LD 


UC-NRLF 


SB    Ifl 


LIBRARY 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 


Class 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH 


UNION    COLLEGE 


[  NOW   A   BRANCH    OF    UNION    UNIVERSITY.  ] 


FOUNDED  AT  SCHENECTADY,  N.  Y .,  FEBRUARY  25,  1795. 


Prepared  in  compliance  with  an  invitation  from  the  Commissioner  of  the 

Bureau  of  Education,  representing  the  Department  of  the  Interior 

in  matters  relating  to  the  National  Centennial  of  1876. 


.WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE 
I  876. 


F:  (8 . 


;'  ••••* 
HISTORICAL  SKETCH 


OF 


UNION    COLLEGE 


[  NOW  A  BRANCH   OF   UNION   UNIVERSITY.  ] 


FOUNDED  AT  SCHENECTADY,  N.  Y.,  FEBRUARY  25,  1795. 


Prepared  in  compliance  with  an  invitation  from  the  Commissioner  of  the 

Bureau  of  Education^  representing  the  Department  of  the  Interior 

in  matters  relating  to  the  National  Centennial  of  1876. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE, 


18,76. 


PREFATORY. 


DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  INTERIOR, 

BUREAU  OF  EDUCATION, 
Washington,  D.  C.,  January  27,  1876. 
This  summary  of  the  history  of  Union  College  is  sent  out 
as  a  specimen  of  the  work  being  done  in  preparation  for  the 
Centennial  of  1876,  and  as  covering  the  leading  points  of  in- 
quiry embraced  in  a  series  of  circulars  issued  from  the  Bureau 
of  Education,  inviting  the  co-operation  of  colleges  and  uni- 
versities in  the  attempt  to  collect  a  full  series  of  statistical  and 
historical  materials  for  this  occasion.  The  returns  will  be 
aggregated  in  general  tables,  and,  under  the  direction  of  Dr. 
Franklin  B.  Hough,  of  this  Bureau,  such  generalizations  and 
illustrations  will  be  prepared  with  a  view  to  publication  in  a 
final  report,  as  the  materials  may  warrant. 

JOHN  EATON, 

Commissioner. 


158579 


UNIVERSITY 

OF 


UNION    COLLEGE. 


ORGANIZATION   AND   EARLY   HISTORY. 

The  only  college  within  the  colony  of  New  York  before 
the  Revolution  was  King's  College,  of  New  York  City,  which 
was  re-organized  soon  after  the  peace  as  Columbia  College. 
The  rapid  growth  of  settlements  toward  the  north  and  west 
had  suggested  to  thoughtful  minds  the  pressing  need  of  some 
institution  for  superior  instruction  at  a  convenient  point  in 
the  interior,  and  this  idea  of  central  accommodation  for  all 
interests,  not  many  years  later,  led  to  the  removal  of  the  State 
capital  to  Albany. 

Even  in  the  midst  of  the  Revolution  we  find  the  project  of 
a  college  at  Schenectady  seriously  entertained,*  but  it  did 
not  gain  sufficient  strength  to  secure  actual  existence  until 

*  From  a  manuscript  in  the  New  York  State  Library,  (Clinton  Papers, 
No.  3467,)  it  appears  that,  in  compliance  with  petitions  circulated  in  1779, 
a  project  was  started  for  the  incorporation  of  Clinton  College  at  Schenec- 
tady. The  preamble  of  the  charter  as  then  proposed  is  as  follows  : 

"Whereas  a  great  number  of  respectable  inhabitants  of  the  counties 
of  Albany,  Tryon,  (Montgomery,)  and  Charlotte,  (Washington,)  taking 
into  consideration  the  great  benefit  of  a  good  education,  the  disadvan- 
tages they  labor  under  for  want  of  the  means  of  acquiring  it,  and  the  loud 
call  there  now  is,  and  no  doubt  will  be  in  a  future  day,  for  men  of  learn- 
ing to  fill  the  several  offices  of  church  and  state,  and  looking  upon  the 
town  of  Schenectady  in  every  respect  the  most  suitable  and  commodious 
seat  for  a  seminary  of  learning  in  this  State,  or  perhaps  in  America,  have 
presented  their  humble  petition  to  the  governor  and  legislature  of  this 
State,  earnestly  requesting  that  a  number  of  gentlemen  may  be  incor- 
porated in  a  body  politic  who  shall  be  empowered  to  erect  an  academy  or 


6  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION   COLLEGE. 

some  years  after  the  peace.  A  project  like  this  is  seldom  dis- 
cussed without  exciting  local  interests,  and  before  the  choice 
fell  upon  the  quiet  old  Dutch  town  on  the  Mohawk,  the 
claims  of  Poughkeepsie,  Albany,  and  Waterford  were  strongly 
urged  as  suitable  points  for  the  establishment  of  a  college  in 
the  interior,  but  not  to  the  extent  of  dividing  the  effort  which 
was  for  the  common  benefit  of  all. 

A  beginning  in  literary  life  at  Schenectady  was  made  in 
the  formation  of  an  association  for  mental  improvement  and 
debate  in  1793,  and  on  the  29th  of  January,  1793,  a  clas- 
sical and  scientific  school  was  incorporated  by  the  regents  of 
the  university  under  the  name  of  "The  Trustees  of  the 

college  in  the  place  aforesaid,  to  hold  sufficient  funds  for  its  support,  to 
make  proper  laws  for  its  government,  and  to  confer  degrees." 

The  feature  of  this  charter  (which  never  passed  the  seals)  most  worthy 
of  notice  is,  that  it  contemplated  the  creation  of  a  corporate  body  by  an 
executive  act,  therein  following  the  colonial  precedents.  Seven  years 
later  the  regents  of  the  university  were  created  in- nearly  their  present 
form,  and  empowered  to  grant  charters  to  colleges  and  academies.  The 
proposed  corporators  of  Clinton  College  were  :  Eliphalet  Ball,  Barent 
Vrooman,  Thomas  Romaine,  John  Rodgers,  Eilardus  Westerlo,  Daniel 
Gross,  John  Livingston,  Alexander  Miller,  Philip  Schuyler,  James  Duane, 
Robert  R.  Livingston,  Abraham  Ten  Broeck,  Abraham  Yates,  jr.,  Robert 
Yates,  Levi  Pauling,  Dirck  Brinckerhoff,  Isaac  Vrooman,  Christopher 
Yates,  John  Cuyler,  Henry  Glen,  Jacobus  Teller,  Hugh  Mitchell,  An- 
drew McFarlan,  Abraham  Oothoudt,  Dirck  Van  Ingen,  James  Gordon, 
Robert  Van  Rensselaer,  Pieter  Vrooman,  Peter  Waggoner,  jr.,  and  Ebe- 
nezer  Clark,  of  the  State  of  New  York ;  Ashley,  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, and  Timothy  Edwards,  of  Massachusetts.  The  annual  income  of 
funds  was  to  be  limited  to  ^3,000  sterling,'  and  the  president  must  be  of 
the  Protestant  Reformed  faith.  The  journals  of  the  legislature  show  that 
the  petitions  upon  which  this  project  was  founded  were  signed  by  850 
inhabitants  of  Tryon  and  Albany  counties,  and  by  140  of  Charlotte 
County.  It  is  reasonable  to  supppse  that  this  early  attempt  was  not  en- 
tirely abortive,  since  it  must  have  created  a  general  impression  that  a 
college  would  some  day  be  established  in  the  interior,  and  that  Schenec- 
ady  would  be  a  proper  site. 


HISTORICAL   SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  7 

Academy  in  the  Town  of  Schenectady."*  A  building  was 
erected  on  the  northwest  corner  of  what  are  now  Union 
and  Ferry  streets,!  and  in  1793  a  school  was  opened  under 
the  care  of  Col.  John  Taylor,  of  New  Jersey.  This  academy 
appears  to  have  been  conducted  with  much  ability,  and 
being  well  sustained  by  the  community  in  which  it  was 
planted,  became  the  germ  of  the  college,  which,  fifteen  years 
before,  had  been  an  object  of  earnest  effort  and  active  dis- 
cussion; nor  can  we  doubt  that  through  these  years  of 
hope  deferred  the  favorite  thought  was  cherished,  until  the 
plan  was  fully  realized. 

The  legislature  having  vested  in  the  regents  of  the  univer- 
sity the  right  of  granting  college  charters,  a  memorial  was 
addressed  to  that  board  by  the  trustees  of  the  academy, 
which  led  to  the  granting  of  a  charter  to  twenty-four  persons 
therein  named,  and  their  successors,  under  the  title  of  "The 
Trustees  of  Union  College  in  the  Town  of  Schenectady,  in 
the  State  of  New  York."  f  They  were  empowered  to  hold 

*  In  this  early  effort  the  Rev.  Dirck  Romeyn,  pastor  of  the  Reformed 
Dutch  church  at  Schenectady,  deserves  honorable  mention.  He  had 
much  at  heart  the  founding  of  a  college  under  the  patronage  of  his  own 
denomination,  as  proposed  in  the  movement  of  I779~'8o.  He  was  pastor 
at  this  place  twenty  years,  and  died  April  16,  1804. 

t  This  building  was  of  brick,  two  stories  in  height,  about  50  by  30 
feet  on  the  ground,  and  cost  about  $3,000.  It  was  used  as  the  first  and 
only  building  for  Union  College  until  1804. 

JThe  first  trustees  were  Robert  Yates,  Abraham  Yates,  jr.,  Abraham 
Ten  Broeck,  Goldsbrow  Banyar,  John  V.  Henry,  George  Merchant, 
Stephen  Van  Rensselaer,  John  Glen,  Isaac  Vrooman,  Joseph  C.  Yates, 
James  Shuter,  Nicholas  Veeder,  James  Gordon,  Beriah  Palmer,  Samuel 
Smith,  Henry  Walton,  Ammi  Rodgers,  Aaron  Condict,  Jacobus  V.  C. 
Romeyn,  James  Cochran,  John  Frey,  D.  Christopher  Pick,  Jonas  Platt, 
and  Jonas  Coe.  Of  these  seven  resided  in  Albany,  six  in  Schenectady,  three 
in  Ballston,  and  in  Saratoga,  Troy,  Kinderhook,  Palatine,  Herkimer,  and 
Whitestown,  N.  Y.,  and  Hackensack,  N.  J.,  one  each. 

Originally  there  were  no  State  officers  holding  ex  officio  as  trustees ; 


8  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

an  estate  with  an  income  of  $13,333^,  were  vested  with  the 
usual  powers  of  a  college,  and  were  empowered  to  fill  vacan- 
cies in  their  board  by  election  of  the  remaining  members. 
The  trustees  of  the  academy  were,  a  few  days  after,  allowed 
to  vest  their  property  in  the  college.* 

The  name  "  Union  College  "  was  given  as  expressing  the 
intention  of  uniting  all  religious  sects  in  a  common  interest 
for  the  common  good  by  offering  equal  advantages  to  all, 
with  preference  to  none.  It  was  designed  to  found  an 
institution  upon  the  broad  basis  of  Christian  unity,  and  this 
idea  has  ever  since  been  faithfully  followed  in  the  spirit  of 
the  original  intention,  no  particular  religious  denomination 
having  at  any  time  claimed  or  attempted  to  control  its 
management,  or  to  influence  the  choice  of  trustees  or 
faculty.  It  is  believed  that  this  was  the  first  college  in 
the  United  States  not  confessedly  denominational  in  its 
character. 

but  under  an  act  passed  March  30,  1805,  the  charter  was  amended  by  the 
regents,  March  29,  1806,  by  reducing  the  number  to  twenty-one,  and 
adding  the  chancellor,  justices  of  the  supreme  court,  secretary  of  state, 
comptroller,  treasurer,  attorney-general,  and  surveyor-general,  by  virtue 
of  their  civil  offices.  The  constitution  of  1821,  by  reducing  the  number 
of  the  judges,  made  further  vacancies,  which,  by  an  act  passed  February  14, 
1823,  were  to  be  filled  by  the  governor  and  lieutenant-governor.  The 
constitution  of  1846,  by  abolishing  some  of  the  above  offices,  required 
further  changes,  and  the  ex-officio  trustees  are  now  the  governor,  lieutenant- 
governor,  attorney-general,  secretary  of  state,  comptroller,  and  treas- 
urer. 

*Act  of  April  6,  1795,  allowing  the  trustees  of  the  academy  to  con- 
vey, and  those  of  the  college  to  accept,  upon  which  the  corporate  powers 
of  the  former  ceased.  From  the  regents'  records  it  appears  that  the 
academy  received  two  apportionments  from  the  literature  fund,  one  of 
$310,  in  1793,  and  the  other  of  $400,  in  1794. 

The  chronicles  of  the  day  record  that  the  event  of  receiving  a  college 
charter  was  celebrated  by  great  rejoicing,  with  the  ringing  of  bells,  dis- 
play of  flags,  bonfii»es,  and  a  general  illumination. 


•J 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  9 

The  college  was  organized  on  the  igth  of  October,  by 
the  election  of  the  Rev.  John  Blair  Smith,  D.D.,  of  Phila- 
delphia, as  president;*  John  Taylor,  A.M.,  as  professor  of 
mathematics  and  natural  philosophy;  and  the  Rev.  Andrew 
Yates,  as  professor  of  Latin  and  Greek  languages. 

The  first  commencement  was  held  in  May,  1797,  and  the 
first  degree  conferred  upon  three  young  men  who  had 
finished  the  course  of  study  then  required.  This  was  an 
occasion  of  signal  and  novel  interest  to  all  the  country 
around,  and  drew  together  a  large  and  enthusiastic  audience. t 

Dr.  Smith  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Edwards, 
D.D.,1  who  died  in  1801,  and  was  followed  by  the  Rev. 
Jonathan  Maxcy,  D.D.,§  who  resigned  in  1804. 

Although  frequent  changes  are  generally  adverse  to  pros- 

*  Dr.  Smith  was  a  son  of  Rev.  Robert  Smith,  a  Presbyterian  clergy- 
man of  Pequa,  Pa.,  and  was  born  June  12,  1756.  He  was  graduated  at 
Princeton,  in  1773;  studied  theology  with  his  brother,  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Stanhope  Smith,  president  of  the  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  Virginia, 
where,  in  1779,  he  succeeded  as  principal.  In  December,  1791,  he  was 
installed  over  the  Third  Presbyterian  Church  in  Philadelphia,  to  which 
charge  he  returned  after  leaving  Union  College,  and  died  there  August 
22,  1 799,  aged  43  years. 

tThe  first  commencement  exercises  were  held  in  the  old  Reformed 
Dutch  Church,  which  continued  to  be  the  only  place  for  these  occasions 
during  many  years.  Afterward  the  Presbyterian  Church  was  used  on 
alternate  years,  and  this  custom  still  prevails.  The  old  Dutch  Church  was 
replaced  in  1814  by  a  building  burned  in  1861,  and  this  has  since  been 
rebuilt,  in  beautiful  architectural  style,  rendering  it  peculiarly  well  adapted 
to  commencement  exercises. 

\  Mr.  Edwards  was  born  at  Northampton,  Mass.,  May  26,  1745,  O.S., 
and  was  the  second  son  of  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Edwards,  afterward  presi- 
dent of  the  College  of  New  Jersey.  He  was  graduated  in  1765,  and,  after 
serving  as  tutor  and  professor,  he  took  charge  of  a  church  at  New  Haven, 
Conn.,  in  1769,  and  at  Colebrook,  Conn.,  in  1796.  He  died  at  Schenec- 
tady,  August  I,  1801. 

§  Mr.  Maxcy  was  born  in  Attleborough,  Mass.,  September  2,  1768; 
was  graduated  at  Brown  University  in  1787,  appointed  professor  of. 


10  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

perity,  and  although  the  college  was  still  feeble,  it  was  not 
without  enterprise.  Under  the  presidency  of  Dr.  Edwards, 
a  new  edifice  was  begun,  on  a  scale  magnificent  for  that  day 
and  still  one  of  the  finest  and  best-built  .in  the  city.  An 
event,  however,  occurred  in  1804  which  proved  to  be  of 
peculiar  advantage  to  the  institution,  and  from  which  its  suc- 
cess may  be  justly  dated.  This  event  was  the  choice  of  the 
Rev.  Eliphalet  Nott,*  as  president.  Mr.  Nott  was  then  a 

divinity  in  1791,  and  in  1792  became  pastor  of  the  First  Baptist  Church 
in  Providence.  Upon  leaving  Union  College  he  went  to  South  Carolina, 
as  president  of  the  South  Carolina  College  at  Columbia,  S.  C.,  and  re- 
mained till  his  death,  June  4,  1820,  aged  52  years.  A  monument  is 
erected  to  his  memory  on  the  college  campus  of  the  University  of  South 
Carolina,  at  Columbia,  S.  C. 

*  Dr.  Nott  was  born  at  Ashford,  Conn.,  June  25,  1773;  received  his 
first  degree  in  the  arts  at  Brown  University  in  1793,  having  gained  his 
education  under  circumstances  of  peculiar  difficulty;  studied  theology 
with  the  Rev.  Joel  Benedict,  of  Plainfield,  Conn.,  and,  in  1796,  became 
pastor  of  a  church,  and  teacher  of  a  classical  school  at  Cherry  Valley,  N.  Y. 
His  talents  soon  gained  kim  a  call  to  the  Presbyterian  church  in  Albany, 
where  he  remained  until  1804.  His  wider  opportunities  there  found  a 
congenial  field  for  the  display  of  the  extraordinary  powers  of  pulpit  elo- 
quence, which  he  possessed,  and  while  in  this  office  he  made  perhaps  the 
most  fortunate  effort  of  his  life,  in  a  sermon  on  the  death  of  Hamilton  at 
the  hand  of  Burr..  From  this  time  he  was  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  rising 
powers  of  the  age,  and  he  was  soon  after  chosen  president  of  Union  Col- 
lege, with  which  institution  his  name  was  ever  after  closely  identified. 
He  held  this  office  with  distinguished  success  the  unbroken  term  of  sixty- 
two  yearSi  During  this  long  course  of  years,  nearly  four  thousand  stu- 
dents received  their  diplomas,  and  entered  upon  the  active  duties  of  life, 
becoming,  in  their  turn,  as  talent  and  opportunity  favored,  centers  of 
influence  and  very  many  of  them  distinguished  ornaments  to  society  in 
every  field  of  honorable  ambition  and  noble  achievement.  The  powers 
of  a  life  devoted  to  active  mental  labors  gradually  yielded  to  the  infirm- 
ities of  age,  until  terminated  by  death  on  the  29th  day  of  January,  1866. 

Had  Dr.  Nott  given  his  time  and  energies  to  scientific  discovery  and 
business  management,  he  would  have  doubtless  won  both  wealth  and 
honors  in  ample  degree.  His  inventive  genius  applied  to  the  construe- 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  II 

young  clergyman  of  Albany,  known  at  the  time  as  an  elo- 
quent and  effective  public  speaker  of  dignified  and  courteous 
manners  and  distinguished  learning,  but  not  as  yet  known 
for  that  talent  in  the  education  of  young  men  which  this 
election  gave  him  the  opportunity  to  exercise  and  which  has 
scarcely  been  surpassed  in  the  history  of  any  American 
college.  Endowed  by  nature  with  a  keen  perception  of 
character,  a  discriminating  judgment  in  developing  latent 
talent,  a  dignity  of  manners  commanding  both  love  and 
respect,  a  facility  in  *  governing  young  men,  wherein  the 
secret  lay  in  teaching  them  to  govern  themselves,  and 
a  zeal  and  earnestness  in  the  discharge  of  every  duty,  he 
acquired  and  held,  through  a  long  and  active  life,  a  com- 
manding position  as  an  educator  which  was  felt  and  ac- 
knowledged throughout  the  country. 

Dr.  Nott  found  the  college  wanting  both  means  and  stu- 
dents. The  inhabitants  of  Schenectady  had  proposed  an 
endowment  of  $30,000  in  lands,  obligations,  and  money;  but 
the  largest  subscription  was  only  $250,  the  next  $100,  and 
the  total  sum  altogether,  from  sources  other  than  direct  gift  of 
the  State,  but  $42,043.74.  Some  grants  were  made  by  the 
State  in  years  as  below  specified.*  The  building  begun 

tion  of  stoves  for  burning  mineral  coal  led  to  the  first  great  success  in  this 
line  of  useful  discovery,  and  his  plans  for  the  improvement  of  steam 
navigation  proved  the  soundness  of  his  philosophical  reasoning  and  his 
distinguished  ability  as  an  inventor. 

*Act  of  April  9,  1795,  for  books  and  apparatus $3,  750  oo 

Act  of  April  1 1,  1 796,  for  buildings 10,  ooo  oo 

Act  of  March  30,  1 797,  for  salaries  during  two  years i,  500  oo 

Act  of  March  7,  1800,  for  completion  of  building 10,  ooo  oo 

Act  of  March  7,  1800,  ten  lots  of  550  acres  each,  in  the  mil- 
itary tract,  for  support  of  president  and  professors 43,  483  93 

Act  of  April  8,   1801,  and  April  3,    1802,    sale  of  garrison 
lands  near  Lake  George 9,  378  20 

Total  State  grants  before  1804 78,  1 12  13 


12  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

under  Dr.  Edwards's  presidency  was  still  unfinished,  and  the 
college  was  burdened  with  a  heavy  debt.* 

The  means  that  had  been  provided  were,  of  course, 
quite  inadequate  to  the  wants  of  a  prosperous  college,  and 
to  supply  the  needed  endowment  recourse  was  had  to  an 
expedient  now  forbidden  by  a  better  public  sentiment,  but 
then  deemed  proper  for  raising  funds  in  aid  of  every  relig- 
ious, educational,  and  benevolent  enterprise  of  the  day,  and 
for  every  public  improvement. 

King's  College,  in  New  York  City,  had  already  been 
aided  to  funds  by  a  public  lottery,  but  other  institutions  had 
since  arisen  which  had  received  no  such  aid.  It  was  there- 
fore deemed  advisable  to  urge  the  passage  of  a  law,  which 

*  The  building  referred  to  in  the  text,  and  known  in  after  years  as  "West 
College,"  was  begun  in  1798  and  finished  in  1804.  It  is  in  the  Italian  style 
of  architecture,  and  probably  from  the  designs  of  Philip  Hooker,  then  an 
eminent  architect  of  Albany.  It  is  of  stone,  three  stories  high,  besides  a  high 
basement,  and  is  surmounted  by  an  elegant  central  cupola.  The  ground 
plan  measures  150  by  60  feet,  and  the  original  cost  was  about  $56,000, 
besides  $4,000  for  the  site.  It  contained  a  residence  for  the  president, 
the  chapel,  library,  and  recitation-rooms,  and  a  considerable  number  of 
dormitories.  In  1815  it  was  sold  to  the  city  and  county  for  a  court-house, 
jail,  and  city  offices,  and  while  thus  owned  it  was  commonly  known  as 
the  "  City  Hall."  The  college  received  in  payment  3,000  acres  of  land  in 
detached  parcels  in  various  parts  of  Schenectady  County.  In  1831  it  was 
repurchased  by  the  college  for  $10,000,  and  used  for  the  library,  cabinets, 
and  residence  of  freshman  and  sophomore  classes  until  1854.  It  was 
then  resold  to  the  city  for  the  sum  of  $6,000,  and  is  now  in  use  by  the 
city  union  schools.  Between  1805  and  1810  a  row  of  two-story  brick 
buildings  was  erected  on  College  street  for  use  as  dormitories.  It  was 
known  as  "Long  College,"  and  was  sold  about  1830.  A  one-story  brick 
building,  about  30  by  80  feet,  was  erected  by  the  city  in  the  rear  of  the 
old  college  (while  used  as  a  court-house)  for  a  Lancasterian  school.  It 
was  afterward  fitted  up  for  the  college  cabinets  and  is  still  in  use  by  the 
city  schools. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  13 

was  secured  March  30,  1805,  for  raising  the  sum  of  $80,000 
by  lottery.* 

A  few  years'  experience  showed  that  the  location  in  the  city 
was  not  sufficiently  ample,  and  the  observing  eye  of  Dr.  Nott, 
at  an  early  period  in  his  presidency,  had  noticed  in  the  suburbs 
a  better  one  that  combined  in  rare  degree  every  advantage 
desirable.  On  the  eastern  border  of  the  city  the  fields  rise 
by  a  gentle  slope  to  a  plain  of  moderate  elevation  and  of  easy 
access.  Near  the  upper  edge  of  this  slope  the  construction 
of  a  terrace  a  few  feet  high  would  afford  a  level  campus  of 
ample  space,  and  a  site  for  buildings  that  would  overlook  the 
valley,  the  river,  and  the  neighboring  city,  while  northward 
glimpses  of  mountains  blue  from  distance,  and  southwestward 
ranges  of  hills  dividing  the  waters  of  the  Mohawk  and  Susque- 
hanna  Rivers,  would  present  a  panorama  of  peculiar  loveliness. 
A  gently  murmuring  brook  issuing  from  dense  woodlands 
flowed  across  the  grounds  just  north  of  the  proposed  site,  and 
in  the  rear  alternating  fields  and  groves  extended  several  miles 
eastward  to  the  Hudson. 

A  tract  of  some  two  hundred  and  fifty  acres  was  secured 
and  new  buildings  begun  upon  plans  drawn  by  M,  Ramee, 
a  French  engineer  then  eminent  in  the  country,  and  for  a 
time  employed  by  the  National  Government  in  planning  for- 
tifications and  public  works.  Construction  was  begun  on 

*  This  sum  was  to  be  drawn  at  four  successive  lotteries  of  $20,000 
each.  The  act  directed  $35,000  to  be  applied  to  the  erection  of  addi- 
tional buildings ;  an  equal  sum  to  be  invested  upon  bond  and  mortgage, 
the  interest  to  be  applied  to  the  support  of  professorships ;  and  the 
remaining  $10,000  to  be  invested,  one-half  of  the  proceeds  for  a  classical 
library,  and  the  balance  toward  defraying  the  expenses  of  indigent 
scholars.  Some  changes  in  the  law  were  afterward  made,  relating  to 
the  mode  of  investment,  and  for  anticipating  the  payment  of  moneys 
that  were  becoming  due.  It  appears  from  a  legislative  report  made  in 
1814,  (Assembly  Journal,  1814,  p.  118,)  that  but  $55,000  were  realized 
from  this  grant. 


14  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

College  Hill  in  1812,  and  the  buildings  were  so  far  advanced 
that  they  could  be  occupied  in  the  summer  of  1814.  To 
provide  the  means  for  these  improvements  and  for  a  sub- 
stantial endowment,  application  was  made  for  anether  grant 
of  a  kind  similar  to  the  last.  An  act  was  accordingly  passed, 
largely  through  the  efforts  Of  Dr.  Nott,  for  raising  the  sum 
of  $200,000  for  Union  College-,  and  considerable  sums  for 
other  institutions.*  The  proceedings  consequent  upon  these 
transactions  extended  through  many  years,  and  the  drawings 
of  the  lotteries  were  not  entirely  closed  until  the  end  of  1833. 
From  the  time  of  the  completion  of  buildings  on  the  new 
site,  and  the  re-occupation  of  West  College,  no  event  of 
special  interest  occurred  to  mark  the  history  of  the  institution 
for  many  years.  The  accompanying  tables  represent  a  season 
of  general  prosperity,  and  the  unusually  large  proportion  in 

*  Of  the  sum  allowed  to  Union  College  by  the  act  of  1814,  there  was 
specially  given : 

For  the  erection  of  buildings $100,000 

For  paying  an  existing  debt 30,000 

For  library  and  apparatus 20,000 

For  the  relief  of  indigent  students 50,  ooo 

Total,  including  all  sums  previously  given  by  the  State,  $331,612.13. 

There  was  also  assigned  in  the  lottery  grant  of  1814,  the  sum  of 
$40,000  to  Hamilton  College,  $4,000  to  the  Asbury  African  church  of 
New  York,  and  $33,000  to  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  the 
City  of  New  York. 

An  act  passed  April  5,  1822,  allowed  the  institutions  in  interest  to  as- 
sume conjointly  or  to  appoint  one  of  their  number  to  complete  these 
transactions  and  assume  the  responsibilities,  the  State  being  absolved  from 
all  liabilities  that  might  occur  therein.  Union  College  undertook  to  close 
up  the  business,  at  which  time  the  sum  allowed  to  be  raised  was 
$322,256.81,  of  which  $45,279.74  belonged  to  Hamilton  College,  and 
$17,000  were  afterward  paid,  amounting  to  $62,279.74;  the  sum  of 
$33, 97 1. 56  belonged  to  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons,  $4,529.30 
to  the  Asbury  church,  and  $12,000  to  the  New  York  Historical  Society, 
making  in  .all  $112,780.62  to  be  deducted  from  the  total  sum  that  then 
remained  to  be  raised. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  15 

the  senior  classes  shows  a  fact  well  known  throughout  the 
country,  that  many  students,  after  passing  through  the  lower 
classes  elsewhere,  came  hither  to  enjoy  the  instruction  of 
Dr.  Nott,  and  receive  from  him  their  first  degree.* 

Although  prominence  is  given  to  the  personal  influence  of 
its  president,  during  many  years  'of  prosperity,  justice  requires 
us  to  record  the  fact,  which  all  the  graduates  will  indorse,  that 
a  large  measure  of  gratitude  is  due  from  them  to  the  other 

*  This  fact,  with*  his  reputed  readiness  to  receive  students  who  had 
been  unsuccessful  elsewhere  but  for  whose  improvement  hope  might  be 
entertained,  attracted  many  to  him,  and  filled  the  higher  classes  of  the 
institution.  One  of  the  leading  educators  of  the  country  has  lately  re- 
marked that  while  this  course  subjected  him  to  criticism,  and  might  be 
regarded  in  some  respects  with  disfavor,  it  still  resulted  beneficially, 
not  only  to  many  individuals,  but  also  in  rendering  college  discipline 
everywhere  more  parental  and  inter-collegiate  comity  more  humane. 
In  that  day  practical  efficiency  in  affairs  was  most  needed  for  the  develop- 
ment of  the  country  ;  but  now,  while  this  is  still  important,  it  is  felt  that 
thorough  training,  mental  discipline,  and  complete  scholarly  furnishing 
is  no  less  essential  to  the  college  graduate.  Hence  the  present  aim  of 
Union  College  is  to  elevate  constantly  the  standard  of  scholarship,  and 
with  this  result  in  view  to  secure  a  well  prepared  and  numerous  freshman 
class.  It  is  found  that  by  an  ample  and  varied  course  of  study,  accom- 
panied' by  rigorous  examinations,  numbers  are  much  reduced  as  the 
class  once  entered  advances  from  year  to  year.  While  this  enables  in- 
dividuals who  find  themselves  unfitted  for  collegiate  or  profession?!  life  to 
retire  without  dishonor,  and  with  advantage  to  themselves  and  their  fel- 
lows, those  who  attain  a  regular  graduation  and  degree  are,  it  is  be^ 
lieved,  well  fitted  for  those  needs  and  circumstances  of  the  times  which 
distinguish  the  present  and  future  from  earlier  ye  .rs  of  national  progress. 
Thus,  while  stricter  examinations  tend  to  decrease  the  numbers  as  classes 
advance,  a  higher  standard  of  entrance  prevents  the  higher  classes  from 
receiving  such  large  accessions  from  other  institutions  as  were  formerly 
customary.  The  lower  classes,  therefore,  will  be  the  largest,  the  base  of 
the  pyramid,  its  broadest  part,  if  the  institution  is  conducted  on  the  sys- 
tem approved  bv  its  president  as  adapted  to  the  present  era,  enforced 
heartily  by  its  faculty,  and  earnestly  insisted  upon  by  its  alumni  and 
friends,  as  essential  to  its  reputation,  usefulness,  and  present  welfare. 


1 6  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

members  of  the  faculty  for  their  talent,  fidelity,  and  ability 
in  conducting  the  interests  more  especially  confided  to  their 
care.* 

But  advancing  age  brings  its  infirmities;  and  in  1852  the 
Rev.  Laurens  P.  Hickok,  D.D.,t  was  called  from  the  Auburn 

*The  names  of  those  who  have  at  different  periods  held  a  place  on  the 

college  faculty  down  to  the  present  time  are  given  in  their  proper  con- 

nection  in  another  part  of  this  article;  but  it  will  not  be  invidious  to 

here  particularize,  in  the  order  of  time,  those  serving  ten  years  or  more 

as  tutors  or  professors  : 

Rev.  Andrew  Yates,  D.D.,  (1797-1801,  1814-182-,)  professor  of  Latin 
and  Greek  during  the  first  period,  and  of  moral  philosophy  and  logic 
afterward.  He  died  in  Schenectady  in  1844. 

Rev.  Thomas  Macauley,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  (i8o5~'o6,  i8u-'22,)  tutor, 
lecturer,  and  professor  of  mathematics  and  natural  philosophy.  Died 
in  New  York  in  1862. 

Rt.'  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Brownell,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  (i8o5-'i9,)  successively 
tutor  and  professor  of  logic  and  belles-lettres,  lecturer  on  chemistry, 
and  professor  of  rhetoric  and  chemistry.  Afterward  Protestant- 
Episcopal  bishop  of  the  diocese  of  Connecticut  till  his  death  at  Hart- 
ford in  1865. 

Pierre  Gr£goire  Reynaud,  (i8o6-'22,)  professor  of  French.  Died  in 
Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Rev.  Francis  Wayland,  (i8i6-'26,)  tutor,  and  then  professor  of  mathe- 
matics and  natural  philosophy.  Afterward  president  of  Brown  Uni- 
versity. Died  in  Providence,  R.  I.,  in  1865. 

Rev.  Robert  Proudfit,  D.  D.,  (i8i8-'6o,)  professor  of  Greek  and  Latin 
languages  till  his  death  in  1860. 

Rt.  Rev.  Alonzo  Potter,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  (i8i9-'26,  i83i-'4S,)  tutor, 
professor  of  mathematics  and  natural  philosophy,  and  afterward  of 
rhetoric  and  natural  philosophy.  Left  college  to  assume  the  duties 

tDr.  Hickok  was  born  in  Danbury,  Conn.,  December  29,  1798, 
graduated  at  Union  College  in  1820,  and,  after  serving  some  years  as  a 
pastor,  was  elected  professor  of  theology  in  the  Western  Reserve  College. 
In  1844  he  became  a  professor  at  Auburn,  and  in  1866  president  of  Union 
College.  He  resigned  this  office  in  1868  in  accordance  with  a  long 
cherished  purpose  that  at  the  age  of  seventy  he  would  retire  from  active 
life  and  devote  his  time  to  the  revision  and  extension  of  his  own  literary 
labors,  in  which  he  is  still  engaged.  He  is  residing  at  Amherst,  Mass. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  Ij 

Theological  Seminary  to  serve  as  vice-president,  and  upon 
him  gradually  devolved  the  cares  of  the  presidency,  although 
they  were  not  actually  conferred  in  name  until  after  the 
death  of  Dr.  Nott  in  1866. '  But  in  this  we  are  passing  over 
two  events  of  peculiar  interest  in  the  history  of  the  college 
that  require  a  special  notice. 

SEMI-CENTENNIAL  OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

This  event  in  the  history  of  the  college  was  celebrated  in 
connection  with  the  commencement  exercises  of  1845,  pre- 
parations having  begun  the  year  before  in  the  appointment 
of  committees  and  the  organization  of  plans.*  The  occasion 

of  Protestant-Episcopal  bishop  of  the  diocese  of  Pennsylvania,  and 

died  in  California  in  1865. 
Joel  B.  Nott,  A.M.,  (i82o-'3i,)  tutor,  lecturer,  and  then  professor  of 

chemistry.     Now  resides  in  Guilderland,  N.  Y. 
Benjamin    F.     Joslin,    M.D.,    LL.D.,    (i822-'37,)    tutor,   professor  of 

mathematics   and  natural  philosophy.     Died  in  New  Yo°rk   in   1861. 
Rev.  John  Austin  Yates,  D.D.,  (i  823^49, )  tutor,  and  then  professor  of 

Oriental  literature  till  his  death  in  1849. 
Rev.    Pierre    Alexis    Proal,  D.D.,    (i826-'36,)   instructor    in    French. 

Died  in  Utica. 
Isaac  W.  Jackson,  LL.D.,  (since   1826,)  tutor,  and  since  1831   professor 

of  mathematics  and  natural  philosophy. 
Rev.  Thomas  C.  Reed,  D.D.,  (i826-'5i,)  tutor,  professor  of  political 

economy,   and   afterward   of    Latin   language   and   literature.      Now 

resides  at  Geneva,  N.  Y. 
Rev.  John   Nott,  D.D.,  (i 830-^4, )  tutor,  then  assistant  professor  of 

rhetoric.     Resides  in  Amsterdam,  N.  Y. 
Jonathan    Pearson,    A.M.,    (since    1836,)  tutor,    assistant   professor   of 

*  One  man  from  each  of  the  first  twenty  classes  was  designated  to  this 
duty,  and  at  the  commencement  season  of  1844  they  met  to  arrange  the 
programme.  It  was  decided  that  two  addresses  should  be  delivered,  one 
from  the  older  and  one  from  the  later  classes,  thus  representing,  so  far  as 
might  be,  the  two  epochs  of  the  occasion.  The  Rev.  Jos.  Sweetman,  of 
the  first  class  graduated,  was  chosen  for  the  former,  and  the  Rt.  Rev. 
Alonzo  Potter,  of  the  class  of  1818,  then  recently  elected  Bishop  of  Penn- 
2  U 


l8  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

called  together  an  immense  number  of  the  alumni  of  the  col- 
lege and  literary  strangers,  to  receive  whom  the  common 
council  extended  the  hospitalities  of  the  city,  and  all  the 
principal  citizens  opened  their  houses  to  receive  guests.  The 
proceedings,  which  extended  through  several  days,  were  pub- 
lished in  a  finely  printed  memorial  volume,  and  left  an  im- 

chemistry  and  natural  philosophy,  and  since  1849  professor  of  natural 
history.     Since  1854  he  has  also  filled  the  office  of  treasurer. 

John  Foster,  LL.D.,  (since  1836,)  tutor,  assistant  professor  of  mathe- 
matics and  natural  philosophy,  and  since  1849  professor  of  natural 
philosophy. 

William  Mitchell  Gillespie,  LL.D.,  (i845~'68,)  professor  of  civil 
engineering  and  adjunct  professor  of  mathematics.  Died  in  1868. 

Alexander  M.  Vedder,  A.M.,  M.D.,  (i849~'63,)  professor  of  anatomy 
and  physiology. 

Tayler  Lewis,  LL.D.,  (since  1849,)  professor  of  ancient  Oriental 
languages  and  literature. 

Elias  Peissner,  A.M.,  (i85i-'62,)  assistant  professor  of  Latin  and 
teacher  of  German  language  and  literature,  lecturer  on  political 
economy.  Was  commissioned  as  colonel  of  the  One  hundred  and 
nineteenth  Regiment  New  York  Volunteers,  September  I,  1862,  and 
was  killed  in  battle  at  Chancellorsville,  Va.,  May  2,  1863. 

Rev.  John  Newman,  D.D.,  (i852-'63,)  professor  of  Latin  language 
and  literature.  Now  resides  in  Poultney,  Vt. 

William  Wells,  A.M.,  (since  1865,)  professor  of  modern  languages  and 
literature. 

Maurice  Perkins,  A.M.,  (since  1865,)  professor  of  chemistry. 

Among  those  of  the  faculty  who  held  for  a  short  term  may  be  men- 
tioned Mr.  Frederick  R.  Hassler,  who,  in  i8io-'ii,  held  the  office  of 

sylvania,  but  still  acting  as  a  professor  in  the  college,  was  chosen  to  repre- 
sent the  latter.  This  selection  was  eminently  fortunate,  since  no  man  was 
more  fully  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  progress  or  better  fitted  to  represent 
the  cultured  intellect  of  the  living  age.  Among  the  names  on  the  com- 
mittee were  the  Hon.  William  H.  Seward,  Bishop  Thomas  C.  Brownell, 
and  Hon.  Samuel  A.  Foote,  of  whom  the  latter  is  still  living.  A  tent  of 
immense  size  was  erected  for  the  dinner,  and  the  tables  were  set  for  a 
thousand  guests. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  19 

pression  upon  the  memories  of  those  who  participated  that 
would  last  through  life. 

SEMI-CENTENNIAL  OF  DR.  NOTT's  PRESIDENCY. 

This  occasion  was  celebrated  on  the  25th  of  July,  1854, 
preliminary  measures  having  been  taken  by  the  alumni  a 
year  before,  and  the  trustees  of  the  college  being  in  full 

professor  of  mathematics  and  natural  philosophy.  He  became  first 
Superintendent  of  the  United  States  Coast  Survey,  and  began  the  precise 
observations  and  measurements  which  have  since  been  continued  under 
his  successors,  giving  this  work  a  just  celebrity  for  accuracy  and  com- 
pleteness. 

The  literary  publications  of  the  faculty  amount  to  over  sixty  in 
number,  and  many  of  them  are  works  of  substantial  merit. 

List  of  publications  by  members  of  the  fac^^lty  of  Union  College. 
Rev.  John  Blair  Smith,  first  president  of  Union  College : 

1.  The  Enlargement  of  Christ's  Kingdom. 

2.  A  Sermon  at  Albany.   1767. 

Rev.  Jonathan  Edwards,  second  president  of  Union  College : 

1.  History  of  the  Work  of  Redemption.  Two  volumes. 

2.  Two  volumes  of  sermons. 

3.  Two  volumes  of  observations  on  important  theological  subjects 
Rev.  Eliphalet  Nott,  fourth  president  of  Union  College : 

1.  Counsels  to  Young  Men. 

2.  Lectures  on  Temperance.   1847. 

3.  Sermon  on  the  Death  of  Hamilton.   1804. 

Rev.  Laurens  P.  Hickok,  fifth  president  of  Union  College: 

1.  Rational  Psychology.  1848. 

2.  Moral  Science.  1853. 

3.  Empirical  Psychology.   1854. 

4.  Rational  Cosmology.   1858. 
Rt.  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Brownell : 

1.  Commentary  on  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 

2.  Consolation  for  the  Afflicted. 

3.  Christian's  Walk  and  Consolation. 

4.  Exhortation  to  Repentance. 

5.  Family  Prayer-Book. 


20  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

accord.  As  on  the  previous  gathering,  the  hospitalities  of 
the  city  were  tendered  to  the  returning  sons  of  Union  and  to 
the  literary  strangers  called  together  by  so  unusual  an  event. 
The  central  point  of  interest  was  in  the  address  of  Dr.  Nott, 
which  was  a  compact  review  of  the  labors,  joys,  and  trials  of 
the  last  fifty  years.  He  might  well  address  to  them  as  a  father 

List  of  publications,  &c. — Continued. 

6.  Religion  of  the  Heart  and  Life.  Five  volumes. 

7.  Religious  Enquirer  Answered. 

8.  Youthful  Christian's  Guide. 
Rev.  Francis  Wayland: 

1.  Moral  Dignity  of  the  Missionary  Enterprise.   1823. 

2.  Duties  of  an  American  Citizen.   1825. 

3.  Occasional  Discourses. 

4.  Elements  of  Moral  Science. 

5.  Elements  of  Political  Economy.   1837. 

6.  Moral  Law  of  Accumulation. 

7.  Limitations  of  Human  Responsibility.   1838,  and  other  works. 
Rt.  Rev.  Alonzo  Potter : 

1.  A  Treatise  on  Logarithms. 

2.  A  Treatise  on  Descriptive  Geometry. 

3.  Political  Economy.   1840. 

4.  Principles  of  Science.   1841. 

5.  The  School  and  Schoolmaster.     [With  G.  B.  Emerson.] 

6.  Handbook  for  Readers  and  Students.   1843. 

7.  Religious  Philosophy  of  Three  Witnesses.    1872. 
Benjamin  F.  Joslin: 

1.  Homoeopathic  Treatment  of  Epidemic  Cholera.   1849. 

2.  Principles  of  Homoeopathy.  1850,  and  other  publications  concern- 

ing homoeopathy. 
Prof.  Isaac  W.  Jackson : 

1.  Elements  of  Conic  Sections.   1854. 

2.  Elementary  Treatise  on  Optics.    1854. 

3.  Elementary  Treatise  on  Mechanics. 
Prof.  Jonathan  Pearson: 

I.  Early  Records  of  the    City  and  County  of  Albany,   translated 
from  the  Dutch,  with  notes.  8vo.  1869. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  21 

to  his  children  words  of  counsel,  of  admonition,  and  of  en- 
couragement ;  and  advice  thus  given  could  not  fail  of  making 
a  deep  and  lasting  impression.* 

List  of  publications^  &*c. — Continued. 

2.  Contributions  for  the  Genealogies  of  the  First  Settlers  of  the 

Ancient  County  of  Albany.  1872. 

3.  Contributions   for   the   Genealogies,  of  the  Descendants   of  the 

First  Settlers  of  the  Town   of    Schenectady,  1662-1800.  8vo. 

1873. 
Prof.  William  M.  Gillespie: 

1.  Rome  as  Seen  by  a  New  Yorker.   1843. 

2.  Roads  and  Railroads.   1845. 

3.  Philosophy  of  Mathematics,  from  the  French  of  Comte.   1851. 

4.  Principles  of  Land-Surveying.    1855. 
Prof.  Tayler  Lewis : 

1.  Nature  and  Ground  of  Punishment.   1844. 

2.  Plato  contra  Atheos.   1845. 

3.  Six  Days  of  Creation.   1855. 

4.  Science  and  the  Bible.   1857. 
Prof.  Elias  Peissner : 

1.  Elements  of  the  German  Language.   1854. 

2.  Elements  of  the  English  Language.   1858. 

3.  Elements  of  Italian,   Spanish,  and  French,  compared  with  Latin 

and  English.    1859. 

4.  Course  of  German  and  Literature. 

5.  English  Address  at   the  Great  Turner   Festival,   Albany.   1858. 

6.  The  American  Question.   1861. 
Rev.  Robert  T.  S.  Lowell,  D.D. : 

1.  Five  Letters  to  a  Romish  Priest.   1853. 

2.  The  New  Priest  in  Conception  Bay.    1858. 

3.  Poems.   1860. 

4.  The  Commemoration  Hymn  for  Harvard  University  Memorial 

Celebration.   1865. 

5.  Antony  Brade. 

*  The  principal  orators  of  the  occasion,  besides  the  venerable  president, 
were  the  Hon.  William  W.  Campbell,  of  Cherry  Valley,  and  the  Rev. 
Francis  Wayland,  then  president  of  Brown  University.  These  proceed- 
ings were  also  carefully  printed  in  a  collected  form. 


22  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

RECENT    HISTORY. 

On  the  retirement  of  Dr.  Hickok,  the  Rev.  Charles  A. 
Aiken,  D.D.,  of  Dartmouth  College,  was  chosen  president, 
and  he  filled  the  duties  with  acceptance  until  1871,  when,  for 
domestic  reasons,  involving  the  health  of  a  member  of  his 
family,  he  resigned  to  seek  a  less  rigorous  climate ;  and  in  the 
selection  of  a  successor  the  choice  fell  upon  the  Rev.  Eliphalet 
Nott  Potter,  D.D.,  a  grandson  of  Dr.  Nott,  and  son  of 
Bishop  Alonzo  Potter,  already  mentioned.  This  selection  of 
a  man  at  an  age  much  younger  than  that  at  which  college 
presidents  are  usually  chosen,  might  appear  to  the  stranger,  as 
a  bold  departure  from  established  precedent.  But  the  friends 
of  the  college  justify  this  action  by  pointing  to  the  marked 
improvements  since  inaugurated,  the  new  buildings  erected, 
the  noble  endowment  funds  since  received,  and  the  increasing 
numbers  .in  attendance,  especially  in  the  lower  classes;  and' 
upon  these  they  base  their  expectations  of  the  future,  and 
look  forward  with  confidence  to  a  new  and  vigorous  growth 
of  the  college,  with  increasing  means  and  a  wider  field  for 
active  usefulness.* 

*  A  reference  to  the  accompanying  tables  will  show  that  the  number  of 
students  has  for  several  years  been  steadily  increasing,  so  that  the.  last 
enrollment  in  the  freshman  class  was  the  largest  in  the  history  of  the  col- 
lege. 

It  is  a  matter  of  history,  which  our  statistics  painfully  illustrate,  that 
with  the  declining  years  of  Dr.  Nott  the  number  of  students  decreased, 
while  during  the  late  war  the  college  was  nearly  stripped  of  its  students 
by  the  withdrawal  of  the  whole  number  from  the  South,  while  many  from 
the  North  were  attracted  to  new  institutions  that  were  competing  for 
favor,  and  appealing  to  the  pride  of  locality  and  to  various  special  motives 
for  support.  It  became  a  subject  of  serious  thought  on  the  part  of  those 
intrusted  with  the  affairs  of  Union  College  as  to  how  the  emergency  was  to 
be  met,  and  no  plan  appeared  more  feasible  than  that  of  yielding  to  the 
progressive  spirit  of  the  age,  by  enlarging  its  facilities,  extending  its 
courses  of  study,  and  in  the  best  sense  of  the  word  rendering  it  fully  the 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  23 

PRESENT    BUILDINGS. 

The  principal  buildings  of  Union  College  are  North  College 
and  South  College,  six  hundred  feet  apart,  and  each  with  a 
colonnade  facing  inward;  a  Memorial  Hall  midway  between, 
but  standing  back  three  hundred  feet  from  the  front  line ;  a 
gymnasium  in  the  rear  of  South  College;  a  President's  House, 
and  three  other  dwellings  on  the  line  with  the  main  college 
buildings,  and  a  professor's  residence  at  some  distance  east  of 
the  principal  group  of  buildings.*  The  original  plans  con- 
peer  of  the  first  institutions  in  the  country.  The  result  appears  to  justify 
the  soundness  of  this  argument,  and  to  encourage  persistent  and  vigorous 
effort. 

*  The  plans  of  North  and  South  Colleges  are  alike  except  as  to  the 
position  of  the  colonnades,  and  when  viewed  in  front  each  appears  as  a  pair 
of  large  three-story  dwellings,  connected  by  a  four-story  building,  the 
lattei  faced  with  pilasters  to  the  whole  height  and  arches  extending  up  to 
include  the  first  and  second  stories.  Each  college  building  is  200  by  40 
feet  on  the  ground.  The  end  portions  are  used  as  residences  for  pro- 
fessors and  the  central  part  as  dormitories  for  students.  This  central 
portion  has  three  separate  entrances  front  and  rear,  with  four  rooms  on 
each  floor,  making,  originally,  forty-eight  rooms  in  each  college.  Within 
the  past  few  years  a  renovation  of  the  interior  has  been  undertaken,  and 
rooms  in  some  cases  connected  for  greater  convenience,  so  as-to  appear 
more  cheerful  and  home-like. 

The  colonnades  are  each  250  feet  in  length  by  25  in  breadth,  and 
terminate  in  square-roofed  buildings  one  story  higher.  These  buildings 
are  each  80  by  50  feet  on  the  ground.  The  North  Colonnade  and  building 
are  used  for  chemical  and  philosophical  apparatus  and  lecture-rooms,  the 
chemical  laboratory  and  cabinets  of  the  engineering  department.  Those 
on  the  south  are  used  for  chapel,  library,  cabinet,  office,  and  recitation- 
rooms. 

Memorial  Hall,  so  long  a  familiar  object  on  paper,  and  originally  de- 
signed as  a  chapel,  was  delayed  from  various  causes,  so  that  its  founda- 
tions were  not  laid  till  1858,  and  the  effort  was  then  suspended  when  the 
walls  had  reached  the  level  of  the  first  story.  Work  has  been  recently 
resumed  by  the  aid  of  funds  given  by  two  brothers  of  President  Potter, 
amounting  to  $50,000,  and  the  work  at  the  time  of  writing  is  fully  in- 


24  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

templated  two  other  college  edifices  to  the  rear,  facing  west- 
ward upon  the  campus,  with  a  semicircular  connecting  colon- 
nade, but  it  is  doubtful  whether  these  intentions  will  ever  be 
'  fully  carried  out. 

PRESENT    GROUNDS. 

The  original  grounds  acquired  for  college  uses  have  been 
somewhat  reduced  by  railroad  and  street  improvements,  but 
are  scarcely  liable  to  further  encroachment,  and  are  amply 
sufficient  for  every  probable  want.  They  embrace  about  one 

closed  and  rapidly  approaching  completion.  The  building  has  sixteen 
equal  sides,  is  eighty-four  feet  in  diameter  and  fifty  feet  in  height  to  the  top 
of  the  walls.  It  is  surmounted  by  a  dome  of  corrugated  iron,  covered  with 
metal  plates,  and  within  plastered  for  frescoing.  The  dome  is  spangled 
with  gilded  stars  and  has  other  appropriate  ornamentation.  The  walls  are 
of  bluestone,  from  the  vicinity,  with  white  Ohio  sandstone  trimmings,  and 
cylindrical  columns  of  polished  granite  in  the  windows.  The  dome  rises 
one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  above  the  floor,  and  the  interior  will  form 
one  spacious  rotunda,  with  galleries  and  alcoves  for  the  library,  and  an 
appropriate  repository  for  works  of  art. 

The  gymnasium  was  completed  in  1874,  at  the  cost  of  prominent  alumni 
of  Albany  and  Troy,  and  through  the  efforts  of  students  in  gathering 
subscriptions,  and  is  one  of  the  largest  and  best  equipped  establishments 
of  the  kind  in  the  country.  It  is  under  the  control  of  a  professional 
gymnast,  whose  theory  is  to  use  its  peculiar  opportunities  for  physical 
development  and  manly  exercise,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  useless  and  dan- 
gerous feats.  The  building  is  80  by  40  feet  on  the  ground,  and  two  stories 
in  height. 

The  President's  House  was  built  in  1873,  chiefly  from  the  donation  to 
the  Christian  Union  endowment-fund  by  a  member  of  the  board  of  trustees, 
and  its  style  is  in  harmony  with  the  general  plan. 

A  cottage  in  the  Swiss  style  of  architecture  was  built  in  the  gardens 
north  of  North  College  in  1873,  and  from  its  fine  location,  half  concealed 
by  trees,  it  presents  a  picturesque  appearance  from  favorable  points  of 
view. 

All  of  these  buildings,  except  memorial  hall  and  the  cottage,  are  of 
brick,  rough-cast  with  ash-colored  cement,  with  pilasters,  arches,  and 
trimmings  in  white,  presenting  a  general  unity  of  plan  and  symmetry  of 
proportion  that  is  quite  pleasing  in  general  effect. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  25 

hundred  and  thirty  acres,  including  the  campus,  gardens,  and 
grounds  properly,  belonging  to  the  college  and  essential  for 
its  use,  besides  some  one  hundred  acres  of  woodlands  and 
fields  adjoining. 

THE   JACKSON    GARDEN. 

During  the  residence  of  Prof.  Thomas  Macauley,  more 
than  fifty  years  ago,  a  beginning  was  made  in  the  improve- 
ment of  a  garden  north  of  North  College.  The  work  was, 
however,  scarcely  more  than  a  beginning  until  Prof.  Isaac  W. 
Jackson  became  a  resident  of  the  adjoining  dwelling  in  1831, 
when  a  series  of  improvements  were  begun,  which,  aided  by 
a  small  annual  grant  from  the  trustees,  have  gradually  trans- 
formed a  wild  ravine  and  tangled  woodland  into  a  charming 
ramble  and  pleasant  retreat.  The  grounds  embrace  some 
twelve  acres,  and  combine  many  attractions  of  sylvan  solitude 
and  floral  beauty.* 

COURSE    OF    STUDY. 

The  details  of  the  course  of  study  first  established  in  Union 
College  cannot  be  determined  with  certainty  from  existing 
records,  but  the  curriculum  of  1802  will  be  found  in  the  fol- 
lowing table.  We  also  -give  the  course  of  study  at  nearly 
even  decennial  periods,  so  far  as  the  data  at  hand  will  per- 
mit. 

*  By  the  act  of  1814  giving  to  Columbia  College  the  title  to  the  botanical 
gardens,  that  have  since  formed  so  noble  a  source  of  wealth,  it  was  pro- 
vided that  within  one  year  at  least  one  healthy  exotic  flower,  shrub,  or 
plant  of  each  kind  in  duplicate,  with  the  jar  containing  it,  should  be  sent, 
if  applied  for,  to  each  other  college  in  the  State.  There  is  not  found  any 
record  showing  that  any  plants  were  received  by  Union  College  under 
this  act. 


26 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 


Classical  coitrse  of  study  in  Union 


1802. 

1833- 

1844. 

«     f 

•0  C  0> 

Cicero  de  Officiis,  de  Ami- 

Livy. 

E 

§   M 

citia,  &c. 

Horace  and    Latin    Pros- 

4d'2J c§ 

Horace    and  Latin    Pros- 

ody,   with    composition 

•£     1 
S     I 

<n  •«-»  C/3 

'*Al 

ody,  with    composition 
and  declamation. 
H  erodotus  and  Thucydides 

and  declamation. 
Xenophon's  Anabasis. 

-If 

-**     V»     -^ 

?i 

Xenophon's      Cyropaedia 
and  Anabasis. 
Horace,  Roman  Antiqui- 

Herodotus and  Thucydides. 
Horace,  Roman  Antiquities. 
Algebra    to    Chapter  III, 

S  «  1 

^^t-i 

ties. 

(Bourdon.) 

>  s  1 

fli 

Livy,    with     composition 
and  declamation. 

1     r 

CO    ^    W 

Sallust. 

Cicero    de    Officiis,    with 

lljs 

Algebra,  (through    equa- 
tions of  the  first  degree.) 

composition  and  declam- 
ation . 

S|- 

iflf 

Lysias,  Isocrates,  and  De- 
mosthenes, with  compo- 
sition and  declamation. 

Algebra,  (continued.) 
Lysias,  Isocrates,  and  De- 
mosthenes. 

S 

c  PT;  cs 

||jl 

j-  c  :2  re 

«  1 

Jl^ss 

Tacitus'  History. 
Xenophon's  Memorabilia 

Tacitus'  History  ;  Geology 
twice  a  week. 

fc 

«S  ''§'|  c 

and  Plato. 

Xenophon's  Memorabilia. 

\ 

^J1*-  >3  ^  <l)  co 

Algebra,  (continued.) 

Plane  Geometry. 

t-5 

^  O  tj     ,'^_,  li 

ilSfl 

YEAR. 

nd  term  . 

IIS 

Aristotle,  Dyonisius,  and 
Longinus. 
Tacitus,  (continued.) 
Plane  Geometry. 

Greek  Majora. 
Juvenal  and  Terence. 
Solid  Geometry. 

S  8 

•i  §  l*M«fl 

0  *    ^ 

~  '13  M  '5  £i  C 

8-r 

S  I 

Pl|!i=, 

Homer's  Odyssey. 
Solid  Geometry.' 
Logic. 

Homer's  Iliad. 
Trigonometry. 
Abercrombie's  Intellectual 

0^1 

'o_S(y'^"^  d£ 

Powers  ;  Botany,  (twice 

»•$*       1 

||a||«'ij 

a  week.) 

h  I 

O  G  "Q  *eH  -^   C  ^-t 

N 

HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 


College  at  different  periods. 


1854. 

1864. 

1875- 

Livy,  3  books. 
Xenophon's    Anabasis,  2 
books. 
Algebra,  to  Square  Root. 

Livy,  3  books. 
Xenophon's  Cyropsedia. 
Algebra,  to  "  Series." 

Livy. 
Xenophon  ;  Homer. 
Algebra  —  (continued)  —  to 
"Series." 
Greek  prose  composition. 
Latin  prose  composition. 

Horace,  3  books  of  Odes  ; 

Prosody. 

Demosthenes'  Philippics. 
Algebra,  (to  «th  root.) 


Horace,  3  books  of  Odes ; 

Prosody. 

Xenophon's  Memorabilia. 
Algebra,  (completed.) 


Horace. 

Xenophon';  Homer;  Hero- 
dotus. 

Algebra,  completed. 
Greek  prose  composition. 
Latin  prose  composition. 


Cicero  de  Officiis,2  books. 
Homer's  Iliad,  4  books. 
Geometry,  Plane,  5  books. 

(Throughout    Freshman 
year  ^exercises  in  Latin 
andGreek  composition.) 

Cicero  de  Officiis,  2  books. 
Homer.  Iliad,  4  books. 
Geometry,  Plane,  5  books. 

(  Th  ro  ugh  out  Fresh  man 
year,  exercises  inLatin 
and  Greek  composition.") 

Cicero  de  Senectute  and  de 
Amicitia. 
Xenophon;  Herodotus;  Eu- 
ripides. 
Geometry,  Books  VI  to  IX. 
Trigonometry. 
Rhetoric,  with  composition 
and  declamation. 
Greek  prose  composition. 
Latin'prose  composition. 

(Physical  culture  3  hours 
a  iveek,and  English  com- 
position throughout   the 
year.) 

Tacitus'  History,  2  books, 
or  Germania  and  Agric- 
ola. 
Homer,  Odyssey,  6  books. 
Geometry,  Solid,  4  books. 

Tacitus'  History,  2  books, 
or  Germania  and  Agric- 
ola. 
Homer,  Odyssey,  6  books. 
.  Geometry,  Solid,  4  books. 
Rhetoric. 

Tacitus. 
Euripides  ;  ^Eschylus. 
History    of     the      United 
States.    • 
Rhetoric,  Art  of  Discourse. 
Review  of  freshman  math- 
ematics. 

Juvenal,  (ist  and    ioth  ;) 
Terence,  (one.) 
Xenophon's  Memorabilia, 
3  books. 
Algebra,  (completed.) 

Juvenal,    (ist,    3d,    and. 
ioth  ;)  Terence,  (one.) 
Euripides,  one     or   two 
Dramas. 
Algebra,  (completed.) 
Study  of  Words. 

Juvenal  and  Terence. 
Euripides  ;  -^Eschylus. 
Conic  Sections. 
Logic. 

Logic. 
Euripides,   one     or  two 
Dramas  . 
Trigonometry,  Plane  and 
Spherical. 
Horace,  Satires  and  Epis- 
tles, (voluntary.) 

Horace,  Satires  and  Epis- 
tles. 
Sophocles,  2  Dramas. 
Trigonometry,  Plane  and 
Spherical. 

(  Throughout  Sophomore 

Horace,  Satires  and  Epis- 
tles. 
Euripides;     Sophocles; 
Plato. 
Statics  and  Dynamics. 
Study  of  Man. 
Botany,  (voluntary.) 
History. 
{Physical  culture  3  hours 

latingGreek  into  Latin.} 

tion     and    declamation 
throughout  the  year.) 

28  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Classical  course  of  study  in  Union  Col 


l802. 

1833- 

1844. 

r 

i 

1  j*  O 

o  p1^ 

1  1 

Trigonometry  and  Appli- 
cations. 
Hesiod  and  Sophocles. 
Rhetoric. 

Conic  Sections. 
Hesiod  and  Sophocles. 
Rhetoric. 
Heeren's  Ancient  Greece, 

*  " 

all 

(twice  a  week.) 

i 

l&l 

i 

§11 

•  -•  r 

III 

Cicero  de  Oratore. 

Cicero     de     Oratore,    or 

*  I  \ 
*\- 

IIs 

M  Q  <f> 

Conic  Sections. 
Natural  Philosophy,  (stat- 
ics.) 

Plautus. 
Chemistry. 
Natural  Philosophy,  (stat- 

_ri 

ics.) 

O    r* 

•^^  C 

Heeren's    Greece,    (com- 

I . 

l?l. 

pleted.) 

1—  » 

"jg!^  t*'C 

Political  Economy. 
Medea,  &c. 

Political  Economy. 
Medea,  &c. 

•£ 

"MTJ^  § 

Natural  Philosophy,  Dy- 

Natural   Philosophy,  Dy- 

"s   - 

en  rt^  o, 

namics,      Hydrostatics, 

namics,       Hydrostatics, 

•»4 

^  .  —  i  -*-*  ^^ 

&c. 

&c. 

pi  o  6  — 

Technology. 

HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 
legs  at  different  periods — Continued. 


1854. 

1864. 

1875- 

Cicero,  Tusculan    Ques- 
tions, 3  books. 
Rhetoric. 
Conic     Sections,     (Jack- 
son's,)   or     Analytical 
Geometry. 

Cicero,  Tusculan  Ques- 
tions, 3  books. 
^Eschylus,  2  Dramas. 
Conic     Sections,    (Jack- 
son's,)    or    Analytical 
Geometry. 
English  Language. 
Chemistry,  (inorganic.) 

Cicero,  Tusculan  Disputa- 
tions. 
Sophocles  ;       .^Eschylus  ; 
Thucydides. 
Mechanical  Work  —  Hydro- 
statics,  Hydrodynamics, 
Pneumatics. 
Elocution. 
Political  Economy. 

Chemistry. 
Sophocles,  2  Dramas. 
Statics  and  Dynamics. 

Quintilian. 
Plato,  Phaedon  or  Gor- 
gias. 
Rhetoric. 
Chemistry,  (organic.) 

Lucretius  or  Quintilian. 
Plato  ;  Demosthenes. 
Elocution. 
Heat:  Steam-engine;  Elec 
tricity  ;  Meteorology. 
Physiology. 
Ethics. 

Political  Economy. 
Plato,  Phaedon    or   Gor- 
gias. 
Hydrostatics-   Hydrody- 
namics-     Pneumatics; 
Heat  ;  Steam. 

Statics  and  Dynamics. 
Geology. 
Physiology. 

Acoustics  ;        Magnetism  ; 
Galvanism;     Electro- 
Magnetism. 
Chemistry. 
History  of  Civilization. 
Zoology. 
Botany. 

(Composition  and  declam- 
ation and  physical  cul- 
ture   3    hours    a    "week 
throughout  the  year.) 

3O  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Classical  course  of  study  in  Union  Col 


1802.* 

1833- 

1844. 

r 

lr| 

Intellectual  Philosophy. 
Lectures    on    Electricity, 
and  Biot's  Optics. 

Moral  Philosophy. 
Astronomy  and   Lectures 
on  Electricity. 

1 

•^   r/i   hn  C/3 

*fil 

Elements  of  Criticism. 

Technology,  (completed.) 
Elements  of  Criticism. 

1 

.23  g  o  d 

1-sil 

-  5  <_  "3 

||  || 

i 

§1-1 

Astronomy. 
Moral  Philosophy. 
Kames,  and  Lectures  on 

Optics. 
Psychology. 
Kames,and  Michelet's  His- 

^ 

Chemistry. 

tory. 

•vj 

"o—  «  .S^*" 

Lectures    on    Magnetism, 

*fe    - 

g"3  Q_^ 

Galvanism,  and  Electro- 

*4 

SlT3 

Magnetism. 

N 

HI  | 

CA 

.Sjij'gjc2. 

0 

<J  o  §T3  S 

S        f 

o  j-  ^  c  .22 

Hebrew. 

Hebrew,  with  Lectures  on 

g 

c  **  "3   ^'-3 

Greek     Testament,    with 

Biblical  Literature. 

E3. 

•j  rtrw  2'§ 

Lectures  on  Biblical  Lit- 

Guizot's History  of  Civili- 

i- bJDTi  «  t4_t 

erature  . 

zation. 

Third  term- 

tfilf 

'o  OS«M  Oi 

Lectures  on  Elements  of 
Criticism,       Chemistry, 
Botany,    and    Mineral- 
ogy- 

Butler's  Analogy,    (twice 
a  week.) 
Botany,     Geology,      and 
Mineralogy. 
Anatomy  and  Physiology, 
(3  times  a  week.) 

"x        £  en  J3 

Synoptical    view    of     the 
Sciences,  in  Lectures. 

l^ll 

(Lectures  arc  also   deliv- 

^•9 »^  2trt 

ered  during  the  course 

D"^  A  M  g 

on  Natural  Philosophy, 

'S  5  cxi  o  c 

Rhetoric  and  Oratory, 

C/5  t-in'S  tn 

Political  Economy,  Met- 

J^T3 3 

aphysical    and    Moral 

£  c  ° 

Philosophy,      and      the 

r 

Philosophy  of  History.) 

*  The  statutes  of  1802  prescribe,  besides  the  course  of  studies  given  in  the  table, 
The  freshmen  and  sophomores  shall  recite  three  times  each  day,  in  term-time, 

ter  vacation,  and  twice  each  day  after  the  winter  vacation  until  commencement. 

time  each  day  until  their  final  examination. 
The  sophomores,  juniors,  and  seniors  shall  exhibit  compositions  of  their  own,  in 

time  for  this  purpose,  the  recitation  on  Fridays  in  the  afternoon  shall  be  omitted . 

indecent,  profane,  or  immoral. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 
ege  at  different  periods — Continued. 


1854. 

1864. 

1875- 

Optics. 

Plato  contra  Atheos,  (vol- 

Optics; Wave    Theory    of 

Sound  ;  Electricity  ;  Mag- 
n  e  t  i  s  m  ;     Galvanism  ; 
Electro-Magnetism. 

untary.) 
Hydrostatics  ;  Hydrody- 
namics :     Pneumatics  ; 

Light  and  Radiant  Heat. 
Mental  Philosophy. 
Lectures  on  Greek  Philos- 

Mental Philosophy. 

Heat;  Steam. 

ophy. 

Criticism. 

Optics. 

Geology. 

Plato  contra  Atheos,  (vol- 

Mental Philosophy 

Plato  contra  Atheos,  (vol- 

untary.) 

Lectures    on    History  of 

untary.) 

Philosophy. 

Applied  Chemistry. 

Chemical    Laboratory  ex- 

ercises. 

Astronomy  . 
Aristophanes,     Birds    or 
Clouds. 
Moral  Philosophy. 

Aristophanes,    Birds    or 
Clouds,  (voluntary.) 
Sound;  Electricity;  Mag- 
netism;   Galvanism  ; 

Astronomy. 
Ethics. 
Christian  Evidences. 
Lectures  on  Greek  Philos- 

Criticism. 

Electro-Magnetism  . 
Astronomy. 
Moral  Philosophy. 
Lectures  on  Ancient  Poe- 

ophy and  Poetry. 
Aristophanes,      Birds      or 
Clouds,  (voluntary.) 
Hebrew,  (voluntary.) 

try. 

English  Literature. 

Lectures  on  the  Bible. 

Comparative  Philology. 

National    and    Constitu- 
tional Law. 
Anatomy  and  Physiology, 

History  of  Philosophy. 
Principles  of  Eloquence. 
English  Literature  ;  Lec- 

Christian Ethics. 
International  Lawand  Con- 
stitution   of  the   United 

(Lectures.) 

tures. 

States. 

Moral  Philosophy  . 
Lectures  on  Classical  and 
Modern  Literature,  Ar- 

Agricultural    Chemistry 
and  Geology. 
Lectures  on  Biblical  Lit- 

Lectures on  English  Poe- 
try. 
Lectures  on  English  Lit- 

chitecture, &c. 

erature,    Architecture, 

erature. 

&c. 

Lectures  on  Biblical    Lit- 

erature. 

Lectures  on  Greek  Poetry. 

Lectures  on  Art. 

Lectures  on  History. 
Mineralogy,  (voluntary.) 

(Rhetorical  exercises  by 

(Physical  culture  3  hours 

Seniors,  Juniors,  and 

a   iveek,  and  rhetorical 

Sophomores  before  the 

exercises  throughout  the 

% 

whole   College,  in   the 

year.} 

Chapel,  on  Saturdays, 

at%a.  m.) 

the  following  requirements : 

during  the  year.    The  junior  three  times  each  day,  until  the  beginning  of  the  win- 

The  seniors  shall  recite  twice  each  day  until  the  winter  vacation,  and  from  that 

the  English  language,  every  Saturday  morning.    That  they  may  have  sufficient 
Every  student  is  strictly  forbidden  to  exhibit  anything  in  his  compositions  that 


32  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Scientific  course  of  study  in  Union 


1833- 

1844- 

5    f 

[Same  as  in  Classical  Course.] 

[Same  as  in  Classical  Course.] 

| 

.11 

^  i  r 

[Same  as  in  Classical  Course.] 

[Same  as  in  Classical  Course.] 

§1! 

FRESHft 
Tkirtt  tarm. 

[Same  as  in  Classical  Course.] 

[Same  as  in  Classical  Course.] 

First  term. 

History. 
Arithmetic. 
Algebra,  (continued.) 

Tacitus  ;  Geology. 
History. 
Plane  Geometry. 

r 

0<      K 

History,  (continued.) 
Natural  Theology. 
Plane  Geometry. 

Natural  Theology. 
Juvenal  and  Terence- 
Solid  Geometry. 

d£ 

x  « 

§  3 

o 

<&. 

SOPHO] 

Th  ird  term. 

Natural  History. 
Solid  Geometry. 
Logic. 

Natural  History. 
Trigonometry  and  Applications. 
Abercrombie"'s  Intellectual  Powers, 
and  Botany. 

HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 


33 


College  at  different  periods. 


1854. 

1864. 

1875- 

[Same     as    in     Classical 
Course.] 

[Same     as    in    Classical 
Course.] 

Latin    Grammar    and 
Reader. 
French  Grammar. 
Algebra  —  (continued)  —  to 
"Series." 
History. 

[Same     as    in     Classical 
Course.] 

[Same    as     in    Classical 
Course.] 

Latin    Grammar    and 
Reader. 
French  Grammar  and 
Reader. 
Algebra,  (completed.) 

(Same     as    in     Classical 
Course.  | 

[Same    as    in     Classical 
Course.] 

French  Grammar  and 
Reader. 
Geometry,  Books  VI  to  IX. 
Rhetoric,  with  composition 
and  declamation. 
Trigonometry. 

(Physical  culture  3  hours 
a  iveek  and  English  coin- 
position   throughout  the 
year.) 

French. 
History. 
Geometry,  Solid,  4  books. 

French,  (Grammar.) 
History. 
Geometry,    Solid,    four 
books. 
Rhetoric. 

French  Classic  Poetry. 
German  Grammar. 
Descriptive  Geometry. 
History    of     the      United 
States. 
Rhetoric;  Art  of  Discourse. 
Review  of  freshman  math- 
ematics. 

French,  (continued.) 
Draughting. 
Algebra,  (completed.) 

French,  (Reader.) 
Geometrical  Draughting. 
Algebra,  (completed.) 
Study  of  Words. 

Contemporary  French  Lit- 
erature. 
German  Grammar. 
Conic  Sections. 
Logic. 
Ancient  History,  eclectic. 
Mensuration,  eclectic. 
Descriptive  Geometry,  ec- 
lectic. 

Logic. 
L  and-Surveying  . 
Trigonometry,  Plane  and 
Spherical. 
Descriptive       Geometry, 
(voluntary.) 
Italian,  (voluntary.) 

Trigonometry,  Plane  and 
Spherical. 
Land-Surveying,    (Parts 

1,2,3-) 

Draughting,  (voluntary.  ) 
French,  (Moliere  or  Ra- 
cine.) 
Italian,  (vpluntary.) 
Botany,  (voluntary.) 

Contemporaneous    French 
Literature. 
German  Grammar  and 
Reader. 
Statics  and  Dynamics. 
Stud}'  of  Man. 
Botany,  (voluntary.) 
Analytical    Geometry,  ec- 
lectic. 
Surveying,  eclectic. 

(Physical  culture  3  times 
a  week;  English  compo- 
sition  and  declamation 
throughout  the  year.) 

3u 


34  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Scientific  course  of  study  in  Union  Col 


1833- 


1844. 


Trigonometry  and  Applications. 

Algebra. 

Rhetoric. 


Conic  Sections. 
Algebra. 
Rhetoric. 

Heeren's  Ancient  Greece,   (twice 
a  week.) 


French. 

Descriptive  Geometry;  Analytical 

Geometry  of  two  Dimensions. 
Natural  Philosophy,  (Statics.) 


German. 

Chemistry. 

Natural  Philosophy,  (Statics.) 

Heeren's  Greece,  (completed.) 

Topography,  (extra  study.) 


Differential  and  Integral  Calculus. 
Analytical  Geometry  of  three  Di- 


mensions. 


Natural    Philosophy,  (Dynamics, 
Hydrostatics,  &c.) 


Differential  and  Integral  Calculus. 

Analytical  Geometry  of  three  Di- 
mensions. 

Natural  Philosophy— Dynamics, 
Hydrostatics,  &c. 

Technology. 

French,  (extra  study.) 

Surveying  and  Leveling,  (extra 
study.) 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 
-Icgc  at  different  periods — Continued. 


35 


1854. 

1864. 

1875- 

German. 

German,  (Grammar.) 

German  Literature. 

Rhetoric. 
Conic     Sections,     (Jack- 
son's,)    or     Analytical 

Analytical  Geometry. 
Descriptive  Geometry. 
English  Language. 

Mechanical  Work  ;  Hydro- 
statics ;  Hydrodynamics  ; 
Pneumatics. 

Geometry. 
Draughting,  (continued,) 

Chemistry,  (Inorganic.) 

Political  Economy. 
Elocution. 

(voluntary,)  Lectures. 
Leveling,        (voluntary,) 

Drawing. 

Lectures. 

Chemistry. 

German,  (Reader.) 

German  Literature. 

German,  (continued.) 

Rhetoric. 

Elocution. 

Statics  and  Dynamics. 
Differential  and  Integral 
Calculus,  (voluntary.) 
Draughting,  (continued,) 

Chemistry,  (Organic.) 
Differential  and  Integral 
Calculus,  (voluntary.) 
Draughting,  (continued,) 

Heat;  Steam-engine;  Elec- 
tricity ;  Meteorology. 
Physiology. 
Ethics. 

(voluntary.) 

(voluntary.) 

Engineering  ;     Mensura- 

tion, (voluntary.) 

Applied  Mechanics,  (vol- 

untary.) 

Political  Economy. 
German,  (continued.) 
Hydrostatics  ;    Hydrody- 

Statics and  Dynamics. 
Geology. 
Mineralogy,  (Determina- 

Acoustics; Magnetism; 
Galvanism;  Electro-mag- 
netism. 

namics  ;      Pneumatics  ; 
Heat;  Steam. 

tive),  (voluntary.) 
Analytical       Mechanics, 

Chemistry. 
Zoology. 

Analytical        Mechanics, 
(voluntary.) 
Higher  Surveying,   (vol- 
untary,) Lectures. 

(voluntary.) 
Draughting,  (continued,) 
(voluntary.) 
German,       (Literature,) 

History  of  Civilization. 
Botany,  (voluntary.) 

Strength     of     Materials, 

(voluntary.) 

(voluntary,)  Lectures. 

Physiology. 

Applied  Mechanics,  (vol- 

untary.) Lectures. 

Botany,  (voluntary.) 

(Physical  culture  3  times 

a    week,    and    composi- 

tion    and     declamation 

th  ro  ugh  out  the  year.) 

36  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Scientific  course  of  study  in  Union  Col 


1833- 


51  1 


Boucharlat's  Mechanics.  I  Boucharlat's  Mechanics. 

Lectures  on  Electricity  and  Mag-  j  Astronomy,  and  Lectures  on  Elec- 
netism,  and  Biot's  Optics.  tricity. 


Elements  of  Criticism. 


Technology. 
Elements  of  Criticism. 
Topography  and  Practical  Astron- 
omy. 


Moral  Philosophy. 
Astronomy. 

Kames,  and  Lectures  on  Chem- 
istry. 


Law,  (Kent  or  Blackstone.) 
Anatomy  and  Physiology. 
Lectures  on  Elements  of  Criticism, 
Chemistry,  Botany,    and    Min- 
eralogy. 


Optics. 
Psychology. 
Kames  and  Michelet. 
Prometheus  Vinctus  of  ^Eschylus, 
to  an  extra  division. 


Law. 

Michelet. 

Butler's  Analogy,  (twice  a  week.) 

Botany,  Geology,  and  Mineralogy. 

Anatomy  and  Physiology,   (three 

times  a  week.) 
Synoptical  view  of  the  Sciences,  in 

Lectures. 


(A  lecture  is  also  delivered  each 
Sunday  evening  on  the  Evi- 
dences of  Christianity, or  on  some 
portion  of  Scripture.) 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 
lege  at  different  periods — Concluded. 


37 


1854. 

1864. 

1875. 

Optics. 
Sound;  Electricity;  Mag- 
netism;    Galvanism; 

Hydrostatics;  Hydrody- 
namics ;     Pneumatics  ; 
Heat;  Steam. 

Optics;    Wave  Theory  of 
Light  and  Radiant  Heat. 
Mental  Philosophy. 

Electro-Magnetism. 
Mental  Philosophy. 

Optics. 
Mental  Philosophy. 

Applied  Chemistry. 
Chemical  Laboratory  Ex- 

Criticism. 
Roads  and  Railroads,  (vol- 

Surveying (continued)  and 
Leveling,  (voluntary.) 

ercises. 
Geology. 

untary.) 

Engineering,  Field  Work, 

(voluntary.) 

Stability    of     Structures, 

, 

(voluntary,)  Lectures. 

Geology,  (voluntary.) 

Astronomy. 

Sound;  Electricity;  Mag- 

Astronomy. 

Spanish. 

netism  ;    Galvanism  ; 

Ethics. 

Moral  Philosophy. 
Criticism  . 

Electro-Magnetism. 
Astronomy. 

Christian  Evidences. 
Lectures  on  English  Liter- 

Engineering     Construc- 
tion, (voluntary.) 

Moral  Philosophy. 
Spanish,  (voluntary.) 

ature. 
Lectures  on  the  Bible. 

Bridges,  (voluntary,)  Lec- 

Engineering,   'Mensura- 

Physical   Laboratory    Ex- 

tures. 

tion,  &c.,  (voluntary,) 

ercises. 

Hydraulic    Engineering, 

Lectures. 

(voluntary,)  Lectures. 

National    and    Constitu- 
tional Law. 

History  of  Philosophy. 
Lectures  on  Biblical  Lit- 

Christian Ethics. 
International  Law  and  Con- 

Anatomy and  Physiology, 

erature,    Architecture, 

stitution  of   the    United 

(Lectures.) 

&c. 

States. 

Moral  Philosophy. 
Geodosy    and    Practical 
Astronomy,     (volun- 

Principles of  Eloquence. 
English  Literature,  Lec- 
tures. 

Lectures  on  English  Poe- 
try. 
Lectures  on  Biblical  Liter- 

tary.) 
Architecture,  (voluntary,) 
Lectures. 

Agricultural     Chemistry 
and  Geology. 
Higher    Surveying    and 

ature. 
Higher  Surveying  and  En- 
gineering Statics,  (volun- 

Engineering      Statics, 

tary.) 

(voluntary.) 

Mineralogy,  (voluntary.) 

Lectures  on  Art. 

Lectures  on  English  Liter- 

ature. 

Lectures  on  History. 

(Rhetorical  exercises  by 
Seniors^  Juniors^  and 

(Physical  culture  3  hours 
a   -week^  and  rhetorical 

Sophomores  before  the 

exercises  throughout  the 

whole  College,  in  Chap- 

year.} 

el^  on  Saturdays  at  8 

a  .  m.) 

38  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

DEPARTMENT  OF  CIVIL  ENGINEERING. 

This  was  established  in  1845,  under  the  direction  of  Prof. 
William  M.  Gillespie;*  its  course  of  instruction  aiming  to 
impart  skill  and  experience  in  mechanical  draughting,  in- 
strumental field-work,  and  numerical  calculation,  combined 
with  the  study  of  text-books  and  lectures  on  numerous  sub- 
jects where  these  are  wanting.  The  canal,  with  its  extensive 
aqueducts;  the  various  railroads  centering  in  Schenectady, 
with  their  numerous  bridges  and  other  structures,  and  exten- 
sive locomotive  works,  founderies,  shops,  and  factories,  afford 
a  .fine  opportunity  for  examination  and  study  in  this  depart- 
ment. This  course  has  recently  been  extended  to  four  years, 
and  intermingled  with  the  scientific  course  of  the  college 
proper.  The  student  thus  gains  a  knowledge  of  modern 
languages  so  essential  to  the  civil  engineer,  and  the  advan- 
tage of  that  mental  discipline  that  tends  largely  to  success  in 
life.  The  department  is  well  supplied  with  models,  the  most 
important  of  which  is  the  Olivier  collection. t 

*  Professor  Gillespie,  who  was  distinguished  alike  as  a  teacher  and  an 
author  in  the  special  lines  of  his  study,  died  in  New  York,  January  i, 
1868. 

t  This  consists  of  about  fifty  models,  representing  the  most  important 
and  complicated  ruled  surfaces  of  descriptive  geometry,  particularly 
warped  or  twisted  surfaces.  Their  directrices  are  represented  by  brass 
bars,  straight  or  curved,  to  which  are  attached  silk  threads  representing 
the  elements  or  successive  positions  of  the  generatrices  of  the  surfaces. 
Each  of  these  threads  has  a  weight  suspended  by  it  so  as  always  to  make 
it  a  straight  line.  These  weights  are  contained  in  boxes  sustaining  the 
directrices  and  their  standards.  The  bars  are  movable  in  various  direc- 
tions, carrying  with  them  the  threads  still  stretched  straight  by  the  weights 
in  every  position  they  may  take ;  so  that  the  forms  and  natures  of  the  sur- 
faces which  they  constitute  are  continually  changing,  while  they  always 
remain  "ruled  surfaces."  In  this  way  a  plane  is  transformed  into  a  par- 
aboloid, a  cylinder  into  a  hyperboloid,  &c.  These  models  were  invented 
by  the  lamented  Theodore  Olivier,  while  professor  of  descriptive  geometry 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  39 

CHEMICAL  LABORATORY. 

A  laboratory  was  established  for  chemical  analysis  in  1855 
at  a  cost  of  about  $7,000  for  fixtures  and  $10,000  for 
chemicals  and  other  stock.  It  has  been  successively  in 
charge  of  Professors  Charles  E.  Joy  and  Charles  F.  Chandlery 
(now  both  of  Columbia  College,)  and  of  Maurice  Perkins, 
M.D.,  the  present  incumbent.  It  has  working  facilities  for 
twenty  students,  and  fifteen  are  now  attending. 

COURSE  OF  STUDIES  IN  THE  ENGINEERING    DEPARTMENT, 
UNION    COLLEGE,    1875. 

FRESHMAN    CLASS. 

First  term. — Latin — French  grammar — Algebra  (con- 
tinued) to  "Series" — Drawing. 

Second  term. — Latin — French  grammar  and  reader — Alge- 
bra, (completed) — Drawing,  plane  problems. 

Third  term. — English  language— French  grammar  and 
reader— Geometry, books  VI  to  IX — Trigonometry,  plane  and 
spherical — Calculations;  rapid,  accurate,  and  approximate. 

(Physical  culture  three  hours  a  week  and  English  compo- 
sition throughout  the  year.) 

at  the  Conservatoire  des  Arts  et  Metiers,  in  Paris.  One  set  of  them  is 
now  deposited  there,  and  a  second  is  in  the  Conservatory  of  Madrid. 
Copies  of  some  of  them  are  to  be  found  in  most  of  the  polytechnic  schools 
of  Germany.  The  Union  College  set  is  the  original  collection  of  the 
inventor,  having  been  made  in  part  by  his  own  hands,  and  after  his  death 
in  1853,  retained  by  his  widow  till  bought  from  her  by  Professor  Gillespie, 
in  1855.  It  is  more  complete  than  that  in  the  Paris  Conservatoire.  It 
may  be  worth  noticing  that  the  silvered  plates  on  the  boxes,  reading 
"  Invente  par  TModore  Olivier"  &c.,  were  added  by  Madame  Olivier 
after  the  purchase,  at  her  own  expense,  as  a  tribute  to  the  memory  of  her 
husband;  her  own  words  being  "  Jc  tcnais  d  ce  que  chaque  instrument 
portdt  le  nom  dn  savant  dont  la  Deputation  pa ssera  a  la  posterite. " 


40  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

SOPHOMORE    CLASS. 

First  term. — French  poetry — German  grammar — Descrip- 
tive geometry — Rhetoric — History  of  the  United  States — 
Review  of  freshman  mathematics. 

Second  term. — Contemporaneous  French  literature — Ger- 
man grammar  and  reader — Conic  sections — Descriptive  ge- 
ometry— Mensuration — Logic — Drawing,  shades  and  sha- 
dows. 

Third  term. — Contemporaneous  French  literature — Ger- 
man grammar  and  reader — Statics  and  dynamics — Survey- 
ing— Analytical  geometry — Study  of  man — History. 

(Physical  culture  three  hours  a  week  and  English  compo- 
sition throughout  the  year.) 

JUNIOR  CLASS. 

First  term. — German  literature — Hydrostatics,  hydrody- 
namics and  pneumatics — Surveying — Machines — Political 
economy. 

Second  term. — German  literature — Electricity,  magnetism, 
galvanism — Physiology — Calculus — Drawing,  oblique  pro- 
ection. 

Third  term — Chemistry — Heat,  steam-engine — Strength  of 
materials — Zoology — Topographical  mapping. 

(Physical  culture  three  hours  a  week  and  composition  and 
declamation  throughout  the  year.) 

SENIOR   CLASS. 

First  term. — Road  engineering — Geology — Optics — Chem- 
istry— Stability  of  structures. 

Second  term. — Engineering  construction — Astronomy — 
Metallurgy — Ethics — Drawing. 

-Third  term. — Physical  Laboratory — Physical  geography — 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  41 

Moral  philosophy — Law  of  contracts  and  right  of   way — 
Botany — Thesis. 

(Throughout  the  year,  physical  culture  three  hours  a  week 
and  rhetorical  exercises.) 

MILITARY    INSTRUCTION. 

In  1873  Union  College  applied  to  the  War  Department, 
requesting  that  an  officer  of  the  Engineer  Corps  might  be  de- 
tailed for  the  purpose  of  giving  military  instruction,  in  pur- 
.suance  of  the  policy  favored  by  act  of  Congress,  with  the 
view  of  inducing  colleges  to  supplement  in  some  degree  the 
work  of  the  military  academy  in  this  department  of  useful 
knowledge.  The  Government  has,  in  accordance  with  this 
request,  supplied  the  college  with  muskets  and  equipments 
for  drill  and  instruction,  under  a  commissioned  officer  of  the 
Army.  A  plain,  inexpensive  uniform  has  been  adopted, 
and  a  course  of  military  instruction  has  been  added  to  the 
college  curriculum  without  abating  anything  from  the  course 
of  studies  formerly  prescribed.  The  drill  is  regarded  chiefly 
as  a  physical  training.  Capt.  Thomas  Ward  of  Second  Ar- 
tillery, U.S.A.,  is  the  present  military  instructor. 

*'  .       COLLEGE  SOCIETIES. 

'     Union  College  has  at  present  two  literary  societies  with 
libraries,*  a  theological  society, t  societies  for  practice  in  par- 

*  The  Philomathean  Society  was  formed  in  1 793  by  young  men  in  town, 
at  the  old  academy,  before  a  college  charter  was*  granted.  It  was  first  called 
:.the  "Calliopean,"  and  it  held  its  first  meeting  under  its  present  name  in 
October,  1795.  It  celebrated  its  semi-centennial  (somewhat  behind  time) 
in  1848.  Its  hall  is  in  the  upper  story  of  the  south  dwelling  of  South 
College,  and  it  possesses  a  library  of  about  three  thousand  volumes. 

The  Adelphic  Society  was  founded  in  1 797,  and  celebrated  its  semi- 

t  Formed  in  1831  for  discussion  of  moral  and  religious  subjects. 


42  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

liamentary  debate,*  seven  "Greek  letter"  societies,!  and  a 
chapter  of  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society.! 

An  alumni  association  was  formed  in  1857,  and  has 
several  branches. § 

centennial  in  1848.     Itshallis  in  the  upper  story  of  the  north  dwelling  of 
North  College,  and  its  library  contains  about  three  thousand  volumes. 

The  Delphian  Institute,  originally  formed  in  1819,  by  students  from 
the  South,  was  limited  in  membership  to  thirty-six.  In  1848  it  was 
merged  into  the  Adelphic.  Its  hall  was  in  the  upper  story  of  the  south 
dwelling  of  North  College. 

*  A  "senate"  and  a  "house  of  representatives"  were  formed  for  pur- 
poses of  debate  on  political  subjects,  the  former  consisting  of  the  senior 
and  the  latter  of  the  junior  class.  The  rules  of  order  and  method  o^ 
procedure  are  modeled,  as  near  as  may  be,  after  those  of  the  Senate  and 
House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States. 

t  These  societies  in  the  order  of  establishment  here  have  been  K.  A., 
Kappa  Alpha,  1825;  2.  $.,  Sigma  Phi,  1827;  A.  $.,  Delta  Phi,  1827; 
*.  T.,  Psi  Upsilon,  1833;  A.  T.,  Delta  Upsilon,  1834;  X.  *.,  Chi  Psi, 
1841;  0.  A.  X  ,  Theta  Delta  Chi,  1847,  (not  now  in  existence  here;) 
Fraternal  Society,  O.  K.  E.,  1834,  (united  with  A.  A.  $.  ;)  O.  A.  or 
Equitable  Union,  1837;  Z.  *.,  Zeta  Psi,  1856,  (discontinued  here;)  A. 
K.  E.,  Delta  Kappa  Epsilon,  1857,  (discontinued here;)  A.  A.  $.,  Alpha 
Delta  Phi,  1859;  and  2.  T.,  Sigma  Tau,  1872. 

$  The  Alpha  Chapter,  4>.  B.  K,  of  the  State  of  New  York,  was  estab. 
lished  at  this  college  in  1817,  and  is  a  strictly  honorary  society. 

SThe  general  catalogues  of  Union  College  contain  a  list  of  names  of 
which  the  college  and  the  country  may  be  proud.  Upon  these  dependence 
might  be  safely  placed  in  whatever  concerns  her  interests,  and  accord- 
ingly a  modification  of  the  charter  was  procured  in  1871,  by  granting  to 
them  a  representation  in  the  board  of  trustees,  so  that  now  there  are  four 
graduates  holding  this  trust,  one  being  chosen  annually  for  a  term  of 
four  years.  The  elections  are  held  on  alumni  day,  the  one  preceding 
commencement,  in  the  chapel,  at  Schenectady.  Prof.  William  Wells 
has,  for  several  years,  taken  an  active  interest  in  this  movement.  He 
has  recently  visited  many  points  in  the  country,  at  which  the  graduates 
of  Union  College  might  be  assembled,  and  with  gratifying  results. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  43. 

SCHOLARSHIPS. 

Under  an  act  passed  in  1814,  the  sum  of  fifty  thousand 
dollars  was  set  apart  as  a  fund,  the  income  of  which  has  ever 
since  been  applied  in  aiding  young  men  of  narrow  means, 
and  thus  multitudes  have  gone  out  into  active  life  well  pre- 
pared, who  but  for  this  would  have  failed  to  receive  a 
thorough  education.  This  aid  is  granted  without  reference 
to  the  intended  profession,  and  with  the  sole  object  of  ac- 
complishing the  greatest  good.  It  is  believed  that  the  num- 
ber thus  needing  encouragement  has  relatively  increased  since 
the  war,  and  that  the  sons  of  rich  men  now  seek  immediate 
opportunities  for  business,  without  waiting  for  that  prepara- 
tion by  way  of  college  training  that  was  formerly  deemed 
requisite.  The  great  number  of  fortunes  hastily  made  within 
a  few  years,  has  attracted  the  notice  and  stimulated  the  am- 
bition of  many  who  have  yet  to  learn  from  experience  that 
such  fortunes  may  be  speedily  lost.  This  tendency  appears 
to  impose  the  necessity  of  aiding  those  of  the  less  fortunate 
class,  but  who,  from  the  increasing  cost  of  subsistence  and 
personal  expenses,  are  finding  it  annually  more  difficult  to 
overcome  these  obstacles  without  pecuniary  aid.  The  en- 
dowment of  funds  for  this  object  becomes,  therefore,  a  philan- 
thropic duty,  and  it  is  with  peculiar  satisfaction  that  the  offi- 
cers of  the  college  are  able  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of 
several  noble  benefactions  for  this  object,  with  assurances  of 
more.* 

*  Actuated  by  this  spirit,  Miss  Catharine  L.  Wolfe,  of  New  York  City,  in 
1873,  informed  President  Potter  of  an  intention  of  giving  fifty  thousand 
dollars,  in  pursuance  of  a  purpose  entertained  by  her  deceased  father,  Mr. 
John  David  Wolfe,  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  the  education  of  young  men 
from  the  Southern  States.  The  father  having  died  before  this  plan  was 
matured,  the  sum  above  mentioned  has  since  been  paid  in  by  the  daugh- 
ter and  securely  invested  at  7  per  cent,  for  this  object.  Already  some- 


UNIVERSITY  1 

,  °:_     J 


44  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

An  effort  is  being  made  to  introduce  the  system  of  en- 
couraging students  to  regard  the  sums  released  to  them,  and 
other  aid  received  from  relief  funds,  as  loans  to  be  returned 
after  leaving  college,  and  as  soon  as  they  can  conveniently  re- 
pay them  from  their  own  earnings.  This  would  tend  to  en- 
courage a  spirit  of  independence,  and  the  student  would 
feel  himself  no  longer  an  object  of  charity,  but  rather 
one  trusted  upon  his  honor,  on  account  of  his  talents  and 
moral  worth.  The  idea  that  a  student  can  maintain  himself 
by  his  own  labor  while  pursuing  his  studies,  is  not  entertained 
in  this  college.  If  it  has  succeeded  in  some  cases  these  are 
exceptional  to  the  general  rule.  If  self-support  must  accom- 
pany the  effort  to  gain  an  education,  it  can  only  be  by  alter- 
nate study  and  labor,  a  course  sometimes  attended  with  the 
advantage  of  enabling  the  student  to  apply  the  precepts  of 
his  college  studies.  It  more  generally,  however,  delays  prep- 
;aration  for  life's  duties,  and  often  leads  to  the  abandonment 
of  a  course  before  it  is  completed. 

I.  ORDINARY  SCHOLARSHIPS. — To  a  large  class  of  students, 
Union  College  presents  extraordinary  advantages  in  its 
numerous  scholarships.  In  the  scholarships  of  the  first 
grade,  the  incumbents,  on  the  condition  of  good  conduct 
and  satisfactory  application  to  study,  receive  at  the  end  of 

twenty-five  Southern  students,  mainly  from  the  excellent  preparatory  in- 
stitution at  Charleston,  S.  C.,  established  and  maintained  by  the  Rev.  A- 
Tamor  Porter,  are  eujoying  this  benefaction. 

A  recent  bequest  of  nearly  fifty  thousand  dollars,  by  Dr.  John  Mc- 
Clelland, of  New  York  City,  of  the  class  of  1832,  has  also  been  made. 
He  was  largely  influenced  in  this  by  the  aid  he  had  himself  received  while 
in  college. 

Still  more  recently  it  has  been  learned  that  a  worthy  son  of  Union 
College  has  placed  a  bequest  of  thirty  thousand  dollars  in  his  will,  to  en- 
dow an  emeritus  professorship,  in  gratitude  for  generous  aid  in  his  youth- 
ful struggles  for  an  education. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  45 

each  term  a  credit  on  the  books  of  the  registrar,  to  the  full 
amount  of  the  term-bill. 

In  the  scholarships  of  the  second  grade,  the  incumbents, 
on  the  same  condition,  receive  a  credit  to  the  amount  of 
half  the  term-bill. 

These  scholarships  are  accessible,  under  certain  restrictions, 
to  all  who  present  the  requisite  certificates  of  character  and 
sustain  the  examinations  required  for  admission  to  the 
regular  classes  of  the  college. 

II.  PRIZE  SCHOLARSHIPS. — Among  the  several  classes  of 
scholarships  founded  by  the  late  Dr.  Eliphalet  Nott,*  is 
a  class  of  prize  scholarships. 

An  examination  of  candidates  for  these  scholarships  is 
held  early  in  the  first  term  of  the  freshman  year,  and  also 
at  a  later  period  in  the  same  year,  and  the  appointments  are 
made  according  to  certain  rules  prescribed  by  the  founder. 

The  pecuniary  emolument  of  a  prize  scholarship  is  thirty- 
five  dollars  a  term,  or  four  hundred  and  twenty  dollars 
for  the  whole  college  course,  a  provision  which  enables  the 
incumbent,  after  paying  his  college  bills,  to  retain  the  sum  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars. 

The  possession  of  a  prize  scholarship  being  a  special 
distinction,  the  incumbent  is  expected  and  required  to 
maintain,  throughout  his  whole  course,  high  standing  as  a 
student  in  all  respects. 

Among  the  rules  which  the  incumbent  is  required  to 
observe  is  one  which  forbids  the  use,  during  the  period  of 
incumbency,  of  intoxicating  liquor  as  a  beverage  and  of 
tobacco  in  all  its  forms. 

*Few  of  these  are  yet  actually  endowed,  but  their  ultimate  endowment 
is  secured  by  the  prospective  sale  of  valuable  lands. 

Some  of  the  scholarships  enable  the  student  to  pursue  post-graduate 
studies  for  a  certain  time,  but  of  fellowships,  properly  so-called,  the 
college  has  none. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 


III.  PRIZES  AND    MEDALS. — The   following   prizes   have 
been  established  in  Union  College : 


Name. 

Princi- 
pal. 

Annual  value. 

Object  and  remarks. 

i   BLATCHFORD  ORATO- 

$1,000 

$40  and  $30.  . 

For  first  and  second    grade  of 

RICAL  MEDALS.  — 
(By  the  late  Richard 

merit  in  oratory,  "  regard  being 
had  alike  to  their  elevated  and 

M.    Blatchford,    of 

classical  character,  and  to  their 

New  York.) 

graceful    and    effective    deliv- 

, 

ery." 

2.  WARNER     P  R  i  z  E.  — 

714 

$50  in  money 

To  the  graduate  of  the  classical 

(By  Hon.    Horatio 

or  plate. 

course  standing  highest  in  the 

G.  Warner,  of  Ro- 

performance of  college  duties, 

chester.) 

and  sustaining  the  best  charac- 

ter for  moral  rectitude  and  de- 

portment,   without   regard    to 

religious  profession  or  practice. 

3.  IXGHAM  PRIZE.  —  (By 
Hon.  Albert  C.  Ing- 

1,000 

$70  in  money 
or  plate. 

To  a  graduate  (of  at  least  two 
years'  residence)   for  the  best 

ham,  of  Meridian, 

essay  on  one  of  two  subjects, 

N.  Y.) 

Previously  assigned,  in  English 

terature  or  history. 

IV.  PRIZE  ESSAYS. — Prizes  are  awarded  to  the  two  mem- 
bers of  the  senior  class  who   present  the   best   essays  on 
English  literature,  on  subjects  assigned  the  previous  term. 

V.  PRIZE   SPEAKING. — Prizes    are  awarded    to    the   two 
members  of  the  junior  and  sophomore  classes,  respectively, 
who  deliver  the  best  orations  on  the  occasion  of  prize  speak- 
ing  during    commencement    week.     Six  juniors   and   four 
sophomores  are  selected  for  this  exercise;  regard  being  had 
both  to  composition  and  to  delivery. 

The  prizes  are  in  the  form  of  valuable  books,  and  are 
announced  at  commencement. 

VI.  SPECIAL  PRIZE. — The  inaugural  prize,  established  by 
the  president  at  his  inauguration,  is  assigned  from  year  to 
year  under  such  conditions  as  may  be  previously  announced. 

COLLEGE  LIBRARIES. 

There  are  three  libraries  connected  with  the  institution,  of 
which    the    college    library   proper   contains    about   twelve 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  '     47 

thousand  volumes,   the  Philomathean  Society  library  three 
thousand,  and  the  Adelphic  three  thousand  volumes.* 

COLLECTIONS  IN  NATURAL  HISTORY. 

From  an  early  period  the  college  has  been  a  center  of  in- 
terest for  students  of  natural  history,  and  collections  were 
added  from  time  to  time,  especially  in  1841,  when  a  consid- 
erable number  of  minerals  and  fossils  were  received  from  the 
State  cabinet.  In  1860  the  "Wheatley  collection  "  of  shells 
and  minerals,  valued  at  the  time  as  worth  $20,000,  and  now 
still  more,  was  presented  by  Mr.  E.  C.  Delavan. 

The  dredgings  upon  our  coast  in  recent  years  have  enriched 
the  cabinet  with  many  forms  of  marine  life,  and  within  the 
last  three  years  an  extensive  collection  of  specimens  was 
added  by  Prof.  H.  E.  Webster  as  the  result  of  his  labors  in 
dredging  at  Eastport,  Me.,  on  the  coast  of  Massachusetts 
and  Virginia,  and  the  west  coast  of  Florida. 

A  valuable  herbarium  has  been  given  by  Dr.  George  T. 
Stevens,  of  Albany. 

PHILOSOPHICAL  DEPARTMENT. 

In  this  department  the  collections,  under  the  care  of  Prof. 
John  Foster,  have  grown  to  be  among  the  finest  in  the 
country.  The  donations  of  friends  have  added  largely  to 
their  value,t  but  the  principal  part  has  been  purchased  by  the 
friends  of  the  college  or  by  special  funds  raised  for  this  pur- 

*  In  1873  Mr.  James  Brown,  of  New  York,  gave  the  sum  of  $10,000, 
under  the  name  of  the  "Coe  memorial  fund."  The  income  is  applied 
to  increasing  the  college  library,  which  it  does  at  the  rate  of  about  two 
hundred  volumes  a  year. 

t  The  donors  to  this  department  are  William  H.  H.  Moore,  Hon.  A. 
H.  Rice,  Henry  C.  Potter,  M.D.,  Henry  R.  Pierson,  Howard  Potter, 
William  A.  Whitbeck,  C.  N.  Potter,  Lemon  Thomson,  and  A.  Q. 
Stevens. 


48  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF   UNION   COLLEGE. 

pose.  The  professor  has  very  recently,  while  in  Europe,  pro- 
cured many  articles  of  especial  interest  as  illustrating  the 
more  advanced  discoveries  of  the  day.  The  more  important 
instruments  owed  by  the  college  are  as  follows  : 

IN  ELECTRICITY  :  Thompson's  divided  ring  electrometer  and  reflecting 
galvanometer;  Wheatstone's  bridge;  British  Association  standard  unit 
of  resistance;  positive  and  negative  electrophorus ;  Holtz  machine,  by 
Ruhmkorff;  Grove's  galvanic  battery  of  40  elements ;  small  induction 
coil,  giving  spark  of  2  inches,  by  Ruhmkorff;  large  coil  with  interrupter 
giving  spark  of  17  inches ;  battery  of  4 jars,  en  cascade,  for  the  large  coil;. 
Chester  battery  of  8  large  elements ;  Bunsen  galvanic  battery  of  60  ele- 
ments; Foucault's  electric  lamp;  collection  of  Geissler  tubes;  magneto- 
electric  machine ;  Morse  register  and  relay  magnet ;  Gaugain's  tangent 
compass;  Lament's  electrometer  for  atmospheric  electricity;  pile  of 
Zamboni ;  large  thermo-electric  pile  of  36  elements  according  to  Marcus's 
method  of  construction;  jar  with  movable  coatings;  apparatus  for  pierc- 
ing glass  with  electricity. 

IN  MAGNETISM  :  Lament's  magnetic  theodolite  for  determining  the 
absolute  intensity;  additions  to  the  theodolite  for  finding  the  absolute 
declination;  dipping  needle  for  observations;  magnetic  engines. 

IN  LIGHT :  Porte  lumiere ;  Duboscq's  magic-lantern,  adapted  to  the 
use  of  either  the  electric  or  lime  light;  Marcey's  sciopticon;  complete 
photographic  apparatus ;  circle  for  demonstrating  the  laws  of  reflection, 
refraction,  polarization,  &c. ;  Duboscq's  apparatus  for  projecting  upon  a 
screen  all  the  phenomena  of  double  refraction  and  polarization;  solar 
microscope  with  collection  of  objects;  prism  for  the  limiting  angle;  equi- 
lateral flint-glass  prism ;  hollow  prism  with  compartments  for  different 
liquids;  polyprism;  mounted  achromatic  lens;  3  bisulphide  of  carbon 
lenses;  total  reflection  fountain;  spectroscopes. 

IN  HEAT:  Ruhmkorft's  thermo-electric  multiplier  and  pile;  line  pile 
for  showing  calorific  spectrum;  collection  of  plates  for  diathermancy; 
apparatus  of  Despretz  for  conduction;  apparatus  of  Gay-Lussac  for  ten- 
sion of  vapors ;  apparatus  of  Senarmont  for  the  conduction  of  heat  in 
crystals;  thermometer  with  reservoir;  weight  thermometer;  wet  bulb 
hygrometer ;  Breguet's  metallic  thermometer ;  differential  thermometer ; 
apparatus  of  Tralles  for  maximum  density  of  water ;  set  of  balls  of  differ- 
ent metals  for  specific  heat;  fire  syringes  of  brass  and  of  glass  ;  Regnault's 
hypsometer  and  hygrometer;  Wollaston's  eryophorus. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  49 

IN  ACOUSTICS:  From  Konig  of  Paris  :  mouth-pieces. of  several  instru- 
ments; model  of  locomotive  whistle;  set  of  10  diapasons  with  resonant 
•cases ;  set  of  19  Helmholtz  resonators ;  double  sirene  of  Helmholtz ;  5 
diapasons  with  resonators  for  the  vowel  sounds ;  large  soufflerie  for 
organ-pipes  and  sirene;  64  organ-pipes  for  demonstrating  theory  of 
vibrating  air  columns ;  sonometer  with  8  cordr. ;  apparatus  of  Melde  for 
vibrating  cords ;  Konig's  new  apparatus  for  interference,  shown  by  man- 
ometric  flames ;  sets  of  plates  for  acoustic  figures ;  ear  and  speaking 
trumpets;  Dr.  Auzoux's  models  of  the  ear  and  the  larynx;  wire-coil  for 
showing  the  mode  in  which  both  light  and  sound  waves  are  propagated, 
presented  by  Blake  Brothers,  of  New  Haven,  Conn. ;  apparatus  of  Lissa- 
jou  for  showing  vibrations  by  both  the  optical  and  graphical  methods ; 
Wheatstone's  kaleidophone  and  wave  apparatus  j  Schaffgotsch's  appara- 
tus ;  Quincke's  apparatus  for  measuring  wave  length. 

IN  PNEUMATICS:  Air-pumps  with  their  apparatus;  Magdeburg  hem- 
ispheres  and  planes ;  apparatus  for  compressing  air ;  apparatus  for  prov- 
ing Mariotte's  law. 

IN  STATICS  AND  DYNAMICS  :  Mechanical  powers ;  Atwood's  machine ; 
whirling-table;  pendulum,  &c. 

IN  HYDROSTATICS  AND  HYDRAULICS  :  Hydrostatic  bellows  and  press ; 
hydrometers ;  Pascal's  vases ;  Mariotte's  flask ;  Prony's  floater  ;  appara- 
tus for  demonstrating  the  laws  of  spouting  fluids ;  models  of  different 
forms  of  fountains ;  hydraulic  ram ;  models  of  various  forms  of  pumps ; 
models  of  water-wheels. 

FOR  PRECISE  MEASUREMENTS:  Steel  scales  of  English  and  French 
measures ;  graduated  vessels  of  various  measures  and  volumes ;  balances 
by  Becker  and  other  makers  ;  spherometer  by  Buff  and  Berger;  Wollas- 
ton's  goniometer;  theodolites,  &c. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  principal  pieces  recently  received  from 
London  and  Paris  : 

Mechanics. — Inclined  plane  of  Galileo,  Atwood's  machine  ;  apparatus 
of  Bourdon  Kater's  pendulum ;  manometer  of  Bourdon ;  hydrostatic 
balance ;  gyroscope  of  Hardy  and  of  Fessel ;  models  of  screws,  of  pen. 
dulums,  and  of  escapements ;  large  apparatus  showing  the  principal 
transformations  of  movement-dividing  machine. 

Heat. — Volumometer  of  Say  and  of  Regnault ;  pyrometer  with  dial ; 
apparatus  for  the  absolute  dilatation  of  liquids ;  of  Regnault,  for  dilata- 
tion of  gases,  both  under  constant  pressure  and  under  constant  volume ; 
•of  Dalton  for  tension  of  vapors;  of  Regnault  for  same;  of  Gay-Lussac 
4U 


50  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

for  tension  of  vapors  below  freezing-point ;  of  Dalton  for  same  in  a  vac- 
uum j  of  Gay-Lussac  for  tension  of  mixed  vapors  and  gases  ;  of  Dumas 
for  density  of  vapors ;  of  Gay-Lussac  for  same  ;  of  Regnault,  with  man- 
ometer, for  density  of  gas  ;  of  Ritchie  for  -emission  and  absorption  of 
heat ;  of  Jamin  for  the  conduction  of  heat ;  calorimeter  of  Lavoisier  and 
Laplace;  of  Regnault  for  specific  heat  by  cooling;  of  same,  large  size; 
for  specific  heat  by  mixtures ;  of  Favre  and  Silbermann  for  measuring 
heat  of  combustion  ;  of  Dupretz  for  measuring  latent  heat  of  vaporiza- 
tion ;  of  Regnault,  for  measuring  the  elastic  force  of  compressed  air, 
and  also  of  the  tension  of  vapors  both  above  and  below  100  degrees  C., 
complete;  pyrheliometer  of  Pouillet;  cathetometer,  one  meter  in  length, 
graduated;  apparatus  of  Pouillet  for  measuring  the  compressibility  of 
gases ;  of  Simon  for  capillarity ;  of  Bouligny,  for  the  spheroidal  state, 
complete ;  set  of  lenses,  prisms,  plates,  £c.,  for  the  Melloni  apparatus ; 
large  machine  of  Natterer  for  liquefaction  of  azote  and  of  carbonic  acid ; 
Carre's  air-pump,  exhausting  and  condensing  with  sulphuric  acid ;  res- 
ervoir. 

Electricity  and  magnetism. — Large  reflecting  galvanometer  of  Weber 
with  telescope ;  vertical  differential  galvanometer ;  apparatus  of  Ampere ; 
electric  planisphere;  gas  pile  of  Grove;  secondary  pile  of  Plante;  large 
magnet  of  Jamin ;  Alliance  magnets  ;  electric  machine  ;  portable  Grove's 
battery  of  fifty  elements  for  the  electric  light ;  large  electro-magnet  for 
diamagnetism,  rotation  of  polarized  ray,  &c.  ;  Delezenne's  circle  ;  ther- 
mo-electric pile  ;  set  of  resistance  coils  with  bridge. 

Acoustics. — Regnault's  chronograph  with  clock;  apparatus  of  Crovee 
for  projection  of  wave  motions. 

Light. — Large  heliostat  of  Silbermann  ;  several  forms  of  apparatus 
for  projecting  colored  rings  of  thin  plates ;  interference  refractor  Of 
Jamin ;  circle,  complete,  of  Jamin  and  Senarmont ;  combined  polari  _ 
scope  and  polarizing  microscope ;  Biot's  apparatus,  complete,  for  rotary 
polarization,  including  Soleil's  saccharometer ;  vertical  lantern ;  prism 
of  Dessains  ;  large  prism  of  Foucault ;  polariscope  of  Arago ;  photome- 
ter of  Foucault ;  Becquerel's  phosphoroscope ;  prisms  of  Senarmont,  of 
Hartnack,  of  Jansen,  of  Rochon,  and  of  Silbermann ;  apparatus  of 
Delezenne;  of  Stokes;  of  conical  prisms  for  caustics  by  reflection  ;  of 
parabolic  mirrors;  of  seven  mirrors  for  recomposition  of  light;  of  two 
large  piles  of  glass  for  polarization ;  a  large  Steinheil  spectroscope  with 
four  prisms ;  large  telemeter  of  Gautier. 

Measurements.' — Sets  of  French  weights  and  measures  of  length  and 
of  capacity,  dry  and  fluid. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  51 

ART  DEPARTMENT. 

The  sum  of  $3,000  per  annum,  the  gift  of  Miss  Catharine  L. 
Wolfe,  of  New  York,  has  afforded  the  means  for  beginning 
a  collection  in  this  department,  and  it  is  proposed,  as  soon  as 
practicable,  to  establish  a  professorship  that  shall  control  and 
develop  the  interests  therein.  The  completion  of  Memorial 
Hall  will  afford  a  fine  opportunity  for  the  preservation  and 
display  of  works  of  art.* 

COLLEGE    MAGAZINES   AND    PERIODICALS. 

The  Floriad  was  published  by  the  Philomathean  Society  in 
the  early -years  of  this  century.  A  few  numbers  of  this,  of 
i8ri,  are  in  the  Boston  City  Library. 

The  Student' s  Album  commenced  in  1827.  This  contained 
essays  and  tales,  literary  and  scientific  items,  and  notices  of 
new  works. 

The  Parthenon  and  Academician's  Magazine.  The  first  vol 
nme  of  this  dated  in  i832-'33,  and  was  continued  two  years. 

Union  College  Magazine.  Begun  in  1860,  under  the  joint 
auspices  of  the  Philomathean,  Adelphic,  and  Theological  So- 
cieties, two  editors  being  appointed  by  each.  It  is  still  con- 
tinued, and  has  been  from  the  first  of  very  creditable  literary 
character.  Three  numbers  appear  annually,  one  each  term, 
and  in  the  third  year  there  was  begun  a  series  of  portraits, 
one  in  each  number,  of  distinguished  men  once  connected 
with  the  college. 

The  Unionian  was  started  about  the  same  time  as  the  lat- 
ter, by  members  of  the  sophomore  class.  It  subsequently 
assumed  the  quarto  form  and  appeared  monthly. 

*  A  series  of  portraits  of  older  members  of  the  faculty  is  being  made 
for  the  hall,  and  it  is  proposed  to  gather  as  large  a  collection  as  can  be 
made  of  the  portraits  and  busts  of  such  as  have  been  prominently  con- 
nected with  the  history  of  the  college. 


52  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

The  Spectator  is  under  the  care  of  a  corps  of  editors  from  the 
advanced  classes  and  representatives  of  the  law  and  medical 
schools  in  Albany  belonging  to  Union  University.  It  is  still 
published  monthly,  partaking  more  of  the  journalistic  char- 
acter, while  the  Union  College  Magazine  represents  the  more 
literary  features  of  the  magazine. 

THE   SONGS    OF    UNION. 

This  feature  of  college  literature  deserves  a  passing  notice. 
For  many  years  they  were  floating  waifs,  and  although  some 
of  them  were  productions  of  real  merit,  no  collection  was 
attempted  until  18 — ,  when  they  were  published  in  a  neat 
volume  entitled  "  Carmina  Concordiae,"  under  the  editorial 
care  of  a  member  of  the  class  of  1856.* 

OTHER    COLLEGE    PUBLICATIONS. 

Xo  catalogues  were  published  in  the  early  years,  and  when 
the  practice  was  begun  it  was  limited  to  a  broad  sheet. 

The  regular  annual  issue  began  in  1820,  and  in  1832  a 
separate  edition  was  published  by  the  students.  The  latter 
usually  contain  the  lists  of  secret  and  other  societies  not  in 
the  official  edition.  General  catalogues  were  published  in 
1819,  1825,  1828,  1834,  1843,  1854,  and  1868,  the  last  two 
being  in  English,  and  the  earlier  ones  in  Latin. 

*  A  few  of  these  songs  are  perennial  in  their  fragrance,  and  are  always 
sung  on  festive  occasions.  This  is  especially  true  of  the  song  to  Old 
Union,  composed  by  Fitzhugh  Ludlow,  of  the  class  of  1856,  and  now 
deceased.  It  is  always  sung  on  commencement  day,  .at  the  close  of  the 
graduating  services.  The  hearty  good  will  and  feeling  with  which  return- 
ing sons  join  in  the  grand  chorus  — 

"Then  here's  to  thee,  the  brave  and  free, 
Old  Union  smiling  o'er  us, 
And  for  many  a  day,  as  thy  walls  grow  gray, 
May  they  ring  with  thy  children's  chorus," — 
show  thai  the  gifted  poet  did  not  attune  his  lyre  in  vain. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  53 

The  affairs  of  Union  College  have  been  frequently  made  a 
subject  of  report  to  the  legislature,  and  these  papers  are  scat- 
tered through  the  legislative  records,  and  their  titles  are  readily 
found  in  the  general  indexes.  No  complete  series  is  known 
to  exist  in  collected  form. 

Sent  i-cen  ten  n  ial  proceedings. 

The  semi-centennial  proceedings  in  1845  and  1854  were 
published,  the  former  making  186  and  the  latter  122  pages. 
The  semi-centennial  proceedings  of  the  Philomathean  Society 
were  published  in  1849  in  a  volume  of  154  pp.;  quarter- 
centennial  proceedings  of  K.  A.,  1851. 

The  proceedings  at  the  inauguration  of  presidents. 

The  exercises  connected  with  the  inauguration  of  Re\\ 
Charles  A.  Aiken,  D.  D.,  June  28/1870. 

Proceedings  at  the  inauguration  of  Rev.  E.  Nott  Potter, 
D.  D.,  as  president  of  Union  College,  1872. 

Catalogues. 

A  catalogue  of  the  college  library  has  never  been  printed, 
but  one  of  the  Philomathean  Society  was  printed  in  1833, 
1841,  1856,  and  1863,  and  of  the  Adelphic  Society  in  1836' 
1843,  1847,  1852,  1856. 

These  societies  have  repeatedly  published  catalogues  of 
their  members,  the  principal  editions  being,  of  the  Philo- 
mathean, 1820,  1830,  1840,  1847,  1850;  of  the  Adelphic, 
1837,  1841,  1846,  1851;  of  the  Delphian  Institute,  1837, 
1844. 

General  catalogues  of  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society  of 
Union  College  were  published  in  1827,  1833,  1852  1860. 


54  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    CF    UNION   COLLEGE. 

Catalogues  of  secret  societies  have  been  published  from 
time  to  time,  the  principal  of  which  were  — 
K.  A.  1842,  1845,  1850,  1859,  1874. 
S.  $.  1838,  1846,  1850,  1853. 
J.  0.  1835,  1840,  1845. 

y.  r.  1842, 1849, 1864. 

X.  V.  1849,  1852,  1854. 

0.  A.  Anti-Secret  Confederation.   1847,  1850,  1853. 

Fraternal  Society.  1856. 

9.  A.  X.  1875. 

Besides  these,  there  have  been  published  from  time  to 
time  and  altogether,  in  amount  equal  to  many  volumes, 
orations,  addresses,  and  poems,  delivered  or  read  before  the 
college  or  its  societies,  by  distinguished  statesmen,  scientists, 
divines,  and  poets.  The  subjects  embraced  every  field  of 
philosophy  and  literature,  of  political  science  and  general 
knowledge,  and  would,  if  collected,  afford  materials  for  a 
publication  of  great  permanent  value. 

The  following  are  a  portion  of  these  publications : 

Dr.  E.  Nott.  Baccalaureate  addresses.  1805,  1806,  and 
1811. 

Samuel  L.  Mitchill.  $.  B.  K.  address.  1821. 

Samuel  Young.  0.  B.  A',  address.  1826. 

Daniel  D.  Barnard.  Senate  of  Union  College.   1843. 

Benjamin  F.  Joslin.  0.  B.  K.  1833. 

Thomas  C.  Reed.    Discourse  on  Chester  Averill.    1837. 

D.  D.  Barnard.  #.  B.  K.  1837. 

William  Kent.  $.  B.  K.  1841. 

Benjamin  F.  Butler.  Senate  of  Union  College.   1841. 

Alfred  B.  Street.  Poem.  0.  B.  K.  1842. 

John  W.  Brown.  Poem.  0.  B.  K.  1843. 

William  H.  Seward.  0.  B.  K.  1844. 

Alonzo  Potter.  Semi-centennial  address.   1845. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  55 

William  B.  Sprague.  Theological  Society.   1846. 

John  Todd.  Literary  Societies.   1846. 

George  P.  Marsh.  Literary  Societies.   1847. 

Ebenezer  Halley.  Theological  Society.  1847. 

Laurens  P.  Hickok.  Theological  Society.   1848. 

Charles  Sumner.  $.  B.  K.  1849. 

George  W.  Eaton.  Literary  Societies.   1849. 

Tayler  Lewis.  $.  B.  K.   1850. 

Thomas  M.  Clark.  0.  B.  K.  1851. 

Luther  F.  Beecher.  Theological  Society.   1851. 

Benjamin  N.  Martin.  $.  B.  K.   1852. 

Ralph  Hoyt.  Poem.  0.  B.  K.  1852. 

Dr.  E.  Nott.  Semi-centennial  address.   1854. 

Francis  Wayland.  Semi-centennial  address.   1854. 

George  W.  Clinton.  $.  B.  K.  1857. 

H.  W.  Warner.  Semi-centennial.   1859. 

D.  H.  Hamilton.  Alumni  address.  •   1861. 

H.  G.  Warner.  0.  B.  K.   1861. 

William  Tracy.  $.  /?.  K.   1862. 

Robert  J.  Breckinridge.  0.  B.  K.  1865. 

Tayler  Lewis.  State  rights.   1865. 

Tayler  Lewis.  Heroic  periods  in  a  nation's  history.   1866. 

C.  N.  Potter.  <P.  B.  K.   1868. 

Charles  J.  Jenkins.  0.  B.  K.   1874. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 
GRANTS    AND    ENDOWMENTS. 

( I )  Special  public  grants  and  endowments. 


Land-grants. 

Extent. 

Value. 

~ 

a 

By  what   authority 
granted. 

1 

1 

osun 

U 

§       Conditions  and 
^             remarks. 

c 

I 

0 

> 

1 

1 

§ 

u 

fi 

o 

fee 

IM 

i 

g 

o 

"c 

.S 

'g 

m 

% 

V 

0) 

i) 

q 

§ 

1 

'0            O               cS 

<  <    > 

^K 

S 

o 

> 

Act   of     legislature, 

1795 

$3,750 

.. 

For  a   library  andi 

April  9,  1795. 
Act  of  April  ii,  1796. 
Act  of  March  30,  1797. 

1796 
1797 



•• 



10,000 

•• 

apparatus. 
F"or  buildings. 
Professor's  salary. 

Act  of  March  7,  1800. 
Act  of  March  7,  1800. 

Act  of  April  8,  1801,  j 
April  3,  1802  | 

1800 
1800 

1801  ) 
1802  { 

10,000 

•• 

College  edifice. 
Support  of  president 
and  professors. 

General  purposes. 

5,500 

J,449 

.. 

$43,484 
9,378 

(2)  Special  public  grants  of  privileges  producing  funds.* 


Date  of  grant. 

Name  of  grant—  special  object. 

Amount. 

By  act  of  legislature,  March  30,  1805. 

Lottery  for  general  purposes  

$55,ooo 

5,  1822. 
Do 

Do  . 

Lottery  for  library  and  apparatus 

Do  

Lottery  for  indigent  students  

50,000 

*  In  former  times,  when  banking  privileges  were  monopolies  difficult  to  secure 
and  reasonably  certain  of  large  profits,  the  privilege  of  subscription  to  bank  stocks 
was  sometimes  granted  to  educational  institutions  as  a  bonus  to  aid  their  funds. 
With  this  view,  by  an  act  passed  April  2,  1813,  the  privilege  of  subscription  to 
the  stock  of  several  banks  was  granted  to  Union  College-  The  enterprise  resulted. 
;n  loss  to  the  institution,  instead  of  benefit. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 
(3)  Special  grants  from  corporations. 


57 


Grantors. 

Date. 

Amount. 

Remarks. 

Reformed  Dutch  Church  of  Schenectady.  .. 

1798 
1708 

8,307 

Do. 
Do 

Presbytery  of  Albany        ..   .     

1708 

Do. 

(4)  Individual  benefactors.* 


Names. 

Date. 

Amount. 

Object,  &c- 

Original  subscriptions.  

*795 

$7,433 

General  purposes. 
Do 

•Ybraham  Yates  jr  

Do 

Eliphalet  Nott 

z8-o 

William  and  George  Doug- 
lass and  sister,  Mrs.  Cru- 
ger. 
Divers  small  subscriptions  .  . 
C.  N.  Potter,  Howard  Potter 
H   G   Warner 

1860 
1859 

,874 

5,000 

2,970 
35,ooo 

brary,  astronomical  observatory, 
&c.,  originally  called  $610,000,  but 
now  by  accumulation  inventoried 
at  $760,523;  all  given  by  trust  deed. 
For  house  for  president  and  Mrs. 
Nott. 

For  Memorial  Hall. 
.Do. 

R  M  Blatchford 

1868 

Do 

jQ_  . 

1,000 

T    H  Powers 

10,000 

Rev.  Jas.  C.  Van  Benschoten 
Rev.  James  A.  H.  Cornell.  .  . 
H   C  Van  Vorst 

l864 
l867 
l875 

56 

5° 

Books. 
Library. 
Do 

James  Brown  

I073 
187-? 

Do 

Do 

1875 

1 

Catharine  L.  Wolfe.   . 

187-3 

Do 

J073 

Do 

Do    ...»  

187* 

S  B    Brownell 

jO-T 

Do     . 

J> 

William  H.H.Moore  
Do     

1874. 

l87<l 

1,928 

Do. 

Johnston  Livingston  ..... 

l87£; 

C  S  Titsworth 

Do 

WTilliam  Tracy  

Do 

R.  D  Hitchcock    

l874 

Do. 

William  H.  Scheiffelin  
Hiram  Gray 

I874 

100 

Do. 
Do 

Robert  Earl    

iS?!? 

Do. 

Jno.  A.  Lansing 

Do 

L.  D.  Baldwin  

j87q 

Do. 

Wrilliam  A.  Righter  

1875 

250 

Do. 

James  H.  Cook 

1875 

Do. 

G.  D.  G.  Moore  

1875 

250 

Do. 

\lex  H.  Rice 

1872 

Physical  apparatus 

Henrv  C.  Potter... 

1872 

400 

'   Do. 

58  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

(4)  Individual  benefactors — Continued.* 


Names. 

Date. 

Amount. 

Object,  &c> 

Henry  R  Pierson..  .--....-. 

1872 

Howard  Potter 

Do 

William  A  Whitbeck 

1872 

Do 

C    N   Potter               

1872 

Do 

Lemon  Thomson  
\nselE  Stevens           ...... 

1872 
1872 

200 

Do. 
Do. 

Joseph  W  Fuller 

1871 

1874 

Hamilton  Harris         

1874 

I.O27 

Do 

Divers  small  subscriptions  .  . 
Benjamin  Brandreth    ...... 

1874 
184-5 

2,873 
250 

Do. 
Physical  apparatus. 

E  C  Delavan 

igco 

(The  Wheatlev  collection  of  min- 

erals and  shells,  valued  at  $20,000  ) 

Howard  Potter 

1870 

(A  painting  6x8  feet    of  Galileo 

Do 

before  the  Inquisition.) 
(Portrait  of  Dr.  Wayland,  late  pres- 

Do 

ident  of  Brown  University.) 
(A  collection  of  shells  valued  $200.) 

Mrs  Harriet  Gillespie 

(A  portrait  of  the  late  Professor 

William  M.  Gillespie.) 

*  Several  of  the  large  subscriptions  since  1870  have  been  given  in  aid  of  the 
Christian  Union  Endowment  Fund,  as  a  measure  tending  to  perpetuate  and 
strengthen  the  unity  which  first  suggested  the  name  of  the  college,  and  which  is 
expressed  in  the  motto  of  the  newly  adopted  seal :  "  In  Essentials,  Unity ;  in  Non- 
essentials,  Liberty ;  in  all  things,  Charity."  This  fund  is  designed  to  be  applied 
in  the  erection  of  new  buildings,  and  in  otherwise  advancing  the  material  interests 
of  the  college. 

Unproductive  funds,  {not  before  mentioned.) 


Value. 

Remarks. 

THE  GREATEST  WANT  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 

Although  Union  College  has  ample  facilities  and  consider- 
able special  endowments,  it  most  needs  funds  that  may  be 
applied  to  general  objects.  The  expenses  of  living  have  so 
increased  that  men  receiving  salaries  deemed  sufficient  twenty 
years  ago,  cannot  now  afford  to  give  their  services  without 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  59 

an  increase  of  pay.  A  grant  restricted  to  a  particular  use 
affords  them  no  relief;  and  in  this  respect  most  of  the  older 
colleges  of  the  country  are  in  the  same  condition,  and  in  one 
sense  poor.  A  professional  endowment-fund  would,  perhaps, 
confer  the  most  substantial  benefit  to  education  of  any  meas- 
ure that  could  be  proposed,  as  by  this  means  alone  the  highest 
talent  can  be  secured  in  a  faculty,  and  therein  the  greatest 
benefit  conferred  upon  students.* 

SUCCESSION    IN    THE    SEVERAL    PROFESSORSHIPS    OF    UNION 
COLLEGE. 

Professors  of  Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy. 

1797,  Col.  John  Taylor,  A.M.,  died  1801. 

1798,  Cornelius  Vander  Heiivel,  M.D.,  died  1799. 

1800,  Benjamin  Allen,  LL.D.,  resigned  1809. 
1805,  Rev.  Thomas  Macauley,  D.D.,  resigned  1822. 
1810,  Frederic  R.  Hassler,  resigned  1811. 

1816,  Rev.  Francis  Wayland,  D.D.,  resigned  1826. 
1822,  Rev.  Alonzo  Potter,  D.D.,  resigned  1826. 
1827,  Benjamin  F.  Joslin,  LL.D.,  resigned  1837. 
1831,  Isaac  W.  Jackson,  LL.D. 
1839,  John  Foster,  LL.D. 

1865,  John  A.  De  Remer,  adjunct  professor  of  mathema- 
tics, resigned  1867. 

1875,  Isaiah    B.  Price,  C.E.,  adjunct  professor  of  physics. 

Professors  of  Greek  and  Latin  Languages. 

1797,  Rev.  Andrew  Yates,  D.D.,  resigned  1801. 

1 80 1,  Timothy  Treadwell.  Smith,  A.M.,  died  1803. 

*  At  the  commencement  of  1874,  it  was  proposed  to  raise  a  fund  for 
^endowing  three  professorships,  of  $30,000  each,  to  be  named  in  gratitude 
to  three  old  and  faithful  members  of  the  faculty,  the  Jackson,  Foster,  and 
Lewis  professorships,  the  first  benefits  to  be  allowed  them  as  emeriti 
professores. 


60  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

1807,  Rev.  Henry  Davis,  D.D.,  resigned  1810. 

1818,  Rev.  Robert  Proudfit,  D.D.,  died  1860. 

1849,  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Reed,  D.D.,  resigned  1851. 

1839,  Rev.  James  Nichols,  A.M.,  assistant  professor,  re-, 
signed  1841. 

1846,  Rev.  Robert  M.  Brown,  D.D.,  assistant  professor, 
resigned  1846. 

1852,  Rev.  John  Newman,  D.D.,  professor  of  Latin,  re- 
signed 1863. 

1858,  Benjamin  Stanton,  A.M.,  professor  of  Latin,  died 
1874. 

1865,  "William  C.  Macy,  A.M.,  adjunct  professor  of  Greek, 
resigned  1866. 

1863,  Henry  Whitehorne,  A.M.,  professor  of  Greek. 
1873,  Rev.  Robert  T.  S.  Lowell,  D.D.,  professor  of  Latin. 

Professors  of  Moral  and  Mental  Philosophy. 

1814,  Rev.  Andrew  Yates,  D.D.,  resigned  1825. 

1868,  Nathan  Hale,  A.M.,  acting  professor,  resigned  1869. 

Professors  of  Logic,  Rhetoric ',  and  Belles-Lettres. 

1811,  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Brownell,  D.D.,  resigned  1819. 
1831,  Rev.  Alonzo  Potter,  D.D.,  resigned  1845. 
1839,  Rev.  John  Nott,  D.D.,  resigned  1854. 
1849,  Wendell  L'Amoreux,  A.M.,  resigned  1853. 
1863,  Rev.  Nathaniel  G.  Clark,  D.D.,  resigned  1866. 

1866,  Rev.  Ransom  B.  Welsh,  D.D. 

Professors  of  Chemistry  and  Natural  History. 

1814,  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Brownell,  D.D.,  resigned  1819. 
1822,  Joel  B.  Nott,  A.M.,  resigned  1831. 
1834,  Chester  Averill,  A.M.,  died  1836. 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  6 1 

1837,  Edward  Savage,  A.M.,  died  1840. 
1839,  Jonathan  Pearson,  A.M. 

1855,  Charles  A.  Joy,  A.M.,  resigned  1857. 
1858,  Charles  F.  Chandler,  LL.D.,  resigned  1865. 
1865,  Maurice  Perkins,  A.M. 

Professors  of  Modern  European  Languages. 

1806,  Pierre  Gregoire  Reynaud,  resigned  1822. 

1826,  Pierre  Alexis  Proal,  D.D.,  resigned  1836. 

1838,  J.  Louis  Tellkampf,  resigned  1843. 

1849,  Wendell  L'Amoreux,  A.M.,  resigned  1853. 
1851,  Elias  Peissner,  A.M.,  died  1863. 
1865,  William  Wells,  A.M. 

Professors  of  Ancient  Oriental  Languages. 

1827,  Rev.  John  Austin  Yates,  D.D.,  died  1849. 
1849,  Tayler  Lewis,  LL.D. 

Professors  of  Civil  Engineering  and  Military  Science. 

1845,  William  M.  Gillespie,  LL.D.,  died  1868. 

1868,  Cady  Staley,  C.E. 

1873,  Capt.  Thomas  Ward,  United  States  Army. 

Professor  of  Anatomy  and  Physiology. 
1849,  Alexander  M.  Vedder,  M.D.,  resigned  1863. 

PRESENT    FACULTY. 

REV.  ELIPHALET  NOTT  POTTER,  D.D.,  President  and 
Professor  of  Moral  Philosophy,  and  of  the  Evidences  of 
Christianity. 

TAYLER  LEWIS,  LL.D,,  Nott  Professor  (No.  6)  of  the 
Oriental  Languages,  and  Lecturer  on  Biblical  and  Classical 
Literature. 


62  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

ISAAC  W.  JACKSON,  LL.D.,  Nott  Professor  (No.  2)  of 
Mathematics. 

JOHN  FOSTER,  LL.D.,  Nott  Professor  (No.  8)  of  Natural 
Philosophy.  • 

JONATHAN  PEARSON,  A.M.,  Professor  of  Agriculture  and 
Botany. 

HENRY  WHITEHORNE,  A.M.,  Nott  Professor  (No.  i)  of 
the  Greek  Language  and  Literature. 

WILLIAM  WELLS,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  Modern  Languages 
and  Literature. 

MAURICE  PERKINS,  A.M.,  M.D.,  Nott  Professor  (No.  3) 
of  Analytical  Chemistry,  and  Curator  of  the  Museum. 

REV.  RANSOM  BETHUNE  WELCH,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Nott 
Professor  (No.  5)  of  Logic,  Rhetoric,  and  Mental  Philosophy. 

CADY  STALEY,  A.M.,  C.E.,  Professor  of  Civil  Engineering. 

HARRISON  EDWIN  WEBSTER,  A.M.,  Professor  of  Natural 
History. 

REV.  ROBERT  T.  S.  LOWELL,  D.D.,  Professor  of  the 
Latin  Language  and  Literature. 

CAPT.  THOMAS  WARD,  U.S.A.,  Professor  of  Military  Science 
and  Director  of  Physical  Culture. 

ISAIAH    B.. PRICE,  C.E.,  Adjunct  Professor  of    Physics. 

CHARLES  JAMES  COLCOCK,  C.E.,  Tutor  in  Mathematics. 

JONATHAN  PEARSON,  A.M.,  Treasurer  and  Librarian. 

EDGAR  MARSHALL  JENKINS,  ESQ.,  Assistant  Treasurer  and 
Registrar. 

HENRY  COPPEE,  LL.D.,  Lectures  on  History. 

SYDNEY  A.  NORTON,  A.M.,  M.D.,  Lectures  on  Experi- 
mental Physics. 

REV.  EDWARD  A.  WASHBURN,  D.D.,  Lecture.:  on  Old 
English  Literature. 

REV.  SAMUEL  OSGOOD,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Lectures  on  Ger- 
man Literature  and  Modern  Thought. 


HISTORICAL   SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  63 

PROF.  M.  WENDELL  L/AMOREUX,  A.M.,  Lectures  on  the 
South  European  Languages  and  Literature. 

PROF.  SELAH  HOWELL,  A.M.,  Lectures  on  English 
Literature. 

Preparatory  Department. 

CHARLES  STORRS  HALSEY,  A.M.,  Nott  Professor,  (No.  7,) 
Principal  of  the  Classical  Institute. 

SAMUEL  BURNETT  HOWE,  A.M.,  Adjunct  Nott  Professor, 
(No.  4,)  Principal  of  Union  School  and  Superintendent  of 
the  Schools  of  Schenectady. 


64  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Statistics  of  attendance  and  graduation. 


Years. 

Undergraduate  classes. 

Lett  without  gradu- 
ating. 

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Years. 

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HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 


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66 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 


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HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  67 


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HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION*  COLLEGE.  69 

HONORARY    DEGREES    CONFERRED    BY    UNION    COLLEGE. 

From  the  year  1795  to  the  year  1875,  a  period  of  eighty 
years  from  the  incorporation  of  the  college,  the  total  number 
of  honorary  degrees  conferred  was  as  follows:  A.B.,  ya; 
A.M.,  241;  D.D.,  219;  LL.D.,  97;  being  an  average  of 
less  than  i  A.B.,  3  A.M.,  between  2  and  3  D.D.,  and 
between  i  and  2  LL.D.,  per  annum.  The  attention  of 
the  board  having  been  called  by  the  president  of  the 
college  to  the  fact  that  the  tendency  of  late  years  had  been 
to  greatly  increase  the  number  of  honorary  degrees  con- 
ferred, the  conferring  of  honorary  degrees  was  omitted  on 
the  occasion  of  his  inauguration.  At  the  meeting  of  the 
board  of  trustees  incident  to  the  following  commencement 
it  was  ordered  that  only  by  unanimous  consent  could  an 
honorary  degree  be  conferred  upon  any  person  whose  name 
had  not  been  submitted  ninety  days  previously,  and  the 
Hon.  Judge  Nott,  of  the  Court  of  Claims,  gave  notice  of  a 
resolution  to  be  offered  at  the  next  meeting  of  the  board, 
limiting,  also,  the  number  of  degrees  to  be  conferred.  It 
was  thought  just  that  these  restrictions  should  not  be 
imposed  until  after  certain  names  presented  to  the  board, 
with  the  anticipation  from  former  precedents  of  a  favorable 
result,  had  been  acted  upon.  The  resolution  offered  by 
Judge  Nott,  seconded  by  the  president  of  the  college,  and 
unanimously  adopted  by  the  board,  is  as  follows : 

Resolved,  That  the  committee  on  degrees  hereafter,  until 
otherwise  instructed,  will  report  to  the  board  only  two 
persons  for  the  honorary  degree  of  Doctor  of  Literature  and 
Laws,  and  three  persons  for  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Divinity. 

The  first  commencement  after  the  adoption  of  the  above 


70  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

resolution,  was  that  of  June,  1875;  the  terms  of  the  resolu- 
tion were  then  and  will  henceforward  be  strictly  complied 
with. 

PREPARATORY    DEPARTMENT. 

•An  academic  school  in  connection  with  Union  College  was 
established  by  President  Nott  immediately  after  his  election 
in  1804.  The  teachers  in  this  school  were  appointed  by  him, 
and  the  principal  was  recognized  by  the  laws  of  the  college 
as  a  member  of  the  faculty.  This  academic  school  became 
popular  and  extensively  useful  for  many  years — the  pupils 
prosecuting  the  irstudies  therein  greatly  exceeding  in  number 
the  students  prosecuting  their  studies  in  the  classes  in  college. 
Among  the  distinguished  men  who  successively  held  the 
office  of  principal  in  this  school,  which  was  conducted  in  the 
two  lower  rooms  of  the  west  college,  were  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas 
Macauley,  Rev.  John  Mabin,  Rev.  Daniel  H.  Barnes,  Hon. 
Aaron  Clark,  and  Rev.  Dr.  Ichabod  S.  Spencer. 

On  the  7th  of  April,  1818,  an  act  was  passed  authorizing 
the  revival  and  re-organization  of  the  Schenectady  Academy  j 
under  this  act  the  academy  was  re-organized  by  the  elec- 
tion of  a  board  of  trustees  on  the  ist  day  of  April  following. 

Three  departments  were  instituted  by  the  board:  the 
first  embracing  the  course  of  studies  requisite  for  admission 
into  college;  the  second  calculated  for  the  education  of 
those  youths  who  do  not  wish  to  go  through  a  college  course ; 
the-  third  adapted  to  the  instruction  of  young  ladies.  The 
first  department  instituted  by  the  board  succeeded  to  and 
was  intended  to  embrace  the  object  for  which  the  academical 
school  aforesaid  was  founded,  and  that  school  was  merged 
in  said  department. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Nathan  N.  Whiting  was  appointed  principal 
of  the  academy,  the  late  Lewis  Beck  instructor  in  the  Eng- 
lish department,  and  Gen.  Jacob  Gould  instructor  in  the 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  -  71 

female  department.  Mr.  William  Beattie  succeeded  as  prin- 
cipal of  said  school  to  Rev.  Mr.  Whiting,  and  on  his  resigna- 
tion in  1828,  Daniel  Fuller  was  appointed  principal. 

To  the  Schenectady  Academy,  the  Schenectady  Lyceum, 
incorporated  under  the  general  law  for  the  incorporation  of 
academies,  succeeded,  and  continued  until  the  re-organization 
of  the  schools  in  1854. 

By  an  act  passed  April  9,  1854,  the  "board  of  education  of 
the  city  of  Schenectady  "  was  constituted,  with  ample  powers 
to  re-organize  the  schools  of  the  city,  and  also  to  purchase  of 
the  trustees  of  Union  College  "  the  building  heretofore  known 
as  West  College  for  the  use  of  said  common  schools  and  an 
academical  department." 

In  accordance  with  this  law  the  trustees  of  Union  College 
sold  the  West  College  to  the  city  in  1854.  At  the  same  time 
an  arrangement  was  made  by  which  so  long  as  the  city 
reserved  two  suitable  rooms  for  the  academical  or  classical 
department,  the  college,  under  provisions  of  Dr.  Nott's  trust- 
deed,  would  pay  the  salary  of  the  principal  of  said  depart- 
ment and  give  free  tuition  to  such  pupils  as  entered  Union 
College  from  said  classical  department. 

The  first  principal  of  the  classical  department  was  Prof. 
Benjamin  Stanton,  who  died  in  1874.  The  second  was  Prof. 
Henry  Whitehorne,  now  professor  of  Greek  in  Union  Col- 
lege ;  and  the  third  and  present  incumbent  is  Prof.  Charles 
S.  Halsey. 

In  1872  a  large  and  commodious  building  was  purchased 
by  Union  College  -for  the  use  of  the  classical  department, 
which  was  re-organized  under  the  name  of  the  Union  Clas- 
sical Institute.  The  premises  are  valued -at  $15,000. 

Its  affairs  are  managed  by  ten  persons,  called  the  "  board 
of  education."  They  are  elected  by  the  legal  voters  of  the 
city,  and  serve  for  a  term  of  two  years.  Three  prizes  have 


72  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

been  established,  of  the  value  of  $50  each,  for  the  best  essays 
in  writing  and  speaking.  Instruction  is  given  by  one  male 
and  four  female  teachers;  and  the  course  of  instruction  is 
divided  into  three  terms  in  a  year  of  thirteen  weeks  each. 
Present  attendance,  60  males  and  75  females. 

UNION    UNIVERSITY. 

Union  College,  we  have  seen,  was  located  at  Schenectady 
because  the  intelligent  statesmen  and  scholars  of  the  period 
saw  the  immediate  necessity  of  a  large  collegiate  institution 
for  the  center  of  the  State,  and  one  which  should,  as  far  as 
possible,  utilize  all  interests,  harmonizing  and  combining  them 
into  a  union  tending  to  produce  strength  and  permanence.. 
It  was  quite  natural  that  the  capital  should,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, be  claimed  as  a  suitable  location  on  account  of 
its  ease  of  access  at  that  time  by  water,  and  the  fact  that  it 
was  the  political  center  of  the  State.  General  Schuyler,  of 
Albany,  was  prominent  among  those  who  were  convinced  of 
the  advantage  of  placing  an  institution  for  the  academic 
training  of  young  men  far  enough  from  the  capital  to  be  free 
from  its  diverting  attractions,  and  yet  not  so  distant  as  to  be 
difficult  of  access  to  this  great  central  power  of  the  State.  To 
him  Schenectady,  with  its  favorable  location  on  the  Mohawk 
and  its  comparative  retirement,  so  conducive  to  successful 
study,  seemed  just  the  spot,  and  his  influence  thrown  into  the 
balance  decided  the  question  in  its  favor. 

About  forty  years  after  the  incorporation  of  Union  College 
the  people  of  Albany  conceived  the  idea  of  establishing  a 
series  of  post-graduate  institutions  at  the  capital,  and  began 
by  the  founding  of  a  medical  school.  For  the  following  suc- 
cinct history  of  the  medical  college,  the  law  school,  and  the 
Dudley  Observatory,  we  are  largely  indebted  to  an  outline 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  73 

prepared  by  one  long  connected  with  these  Albany  institu- 
tions.* 

ALBANY    MEDICAL    COLLEGE. 

At  a  meeting  of  citizens  of  Albany  held  April  14,  1838,  the 
following  resolution  was  adopted  :    • 

Resolved,  That  this  meeting  deem  it  expedient  to  establish 
a  medical  college  in  this  city,  and  to  endeavor  hereafter  to 
obtain  an  act  of  incorporation  from  the  legislature. 
»  To  give  immediate  effect  to  this  resolution,  Samuel  Stevens 
and  George  Dexter,  esquires,  were  appointed  a  committee  to 
prepare  articles  of  association ;  a  building  for  the  use  of  the 
proposed  institution  was  obtained  from  the  city  authorities* 
and  the  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars  was  subscribed  as  pre- 
liminary to  its  more  ample  endowment.  A  few  weeks  after, 
Judge  Harris,  on  the  part  of  the  board  of  trustees,  reported 
the  appointment  of  the  following  persons  as  the  members  of 
the  first  faculty  of  the  Albany  Medical  College,  viz :  Drs. 
Alden  March,  James  H.  Armsby,  Ebenezer  Emmons,  Henry 
Green,  and  David  McLachlan.  The  Hon.  Amos  Dean  was 
at  the  same  time  appointed  professor  of  medical  jurisprudence. 
Soon  after  Dr.  David  M.  Russ  was  added  to  the  faculty,  and 
George  Dexter,  esq.,  was  made  treasurer  of  the  board  of 
trustees. 

*  These  historical  summaries  of  the  Albany  institutions  forming  a  part 
of  Union  University,  as  now  recognized  by  law,  are  inserted  in  this  con- 
nection to  complete  the  account  of  the  university,  and  as  the  best  that 
can  be  had  at  this  moment.  They  were  prepared  by  Dr.  James  H. 
Armsby,  recently  deceased,  and  from  his  own  intimate  connection  with 
their  origin  and  management,  he  could  not  speak  of  them  with  that  free- 
dom which  another  person  acquainted  with  the  facts  might  justly  have 
done.  They  are  not,  therefore,  presented  in  this  connection  as  a  model 
of  full  histories,  and  when  completed  for  the  final  report  they  will  em- 
brace more  precise  dates  and  statistics  than  are  at  hand  as  these  pages  go 
to  press. 

F.  B.  H. 


74  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

Among  distinguished  members  of  the  medical  profession 
who  have  filled  the  vacancies  that  have  from  time  to  time 
been  caused  by  the  death  or  resignation  of  members  of  the 
original  faculty,  are  Drs.  Thomas  Hun,  Gunning  S.  Bed- 
ford, James  McNaughton,  Lewis  C.  Beck,  T.  Rorneyn  Beck, 
Howard  Townsend. 

The  holding  of  surgical  cliniques  was  introduced  at  an 
early  period  in  the  history  of  the  college,  and  has  been  con- 
tinued to  the  present  time. 

The  museum  of  the  college,  originally  consisting  of  the 
private  anatomical  and  pathological  collections  of  Drs. 
March,  Armsby,  and  McNaughton,  presented  by  them  to  the 
college,  has  been  constantly  increasing  in  extent  and  value, 
and  is  now  not  inferior  to  that  of  any  medical  college  in  the 
country.  Dr.  March  made  a  liberal  bequest  to  the  college 
for  the  care  and  preservation  of  his  collection. 

The  college  still  occupies  the  old  Lancaster  school  building? 
the  use  of  which  was  granted  by  the  common  council  of  the 
city  of  Albany,  but  extensive  additions  have  been  made  to 
the  original  edifice. 

In  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  college  is  the  kindred 
institution,  the  Albany  Hospital.  This  noble  charity,  which 
receives  the  liberal  support  of  the  citizens  of  Albany,  fur- 
nishes gratuitous  treatment  to  all  indigent  persons  who  apply 
for  it.  Many  of  the  professors  are  connected  with  it,  and  the 
students  are  admitted  without  charge  to  its  diniques,  lectures, 
and  practice. 

ALBANY   LAW    SCHOOL. 

The  law  school  was  incorporated  under  an  act  of  the  legis- 
lature in  the  spring  of  1851.  The  trustees  met  on  the  2ist 
of  April,  and  organized  the  school  by  the  following  appoint- 
ments :  President  of  the  board  of  trustees,  Thomas  W.  Ol- 
cott,  esq. ;  secretary,  Orlando  Meads,  LL.D. ;  professors, 


HISTORICAL    SKEtCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE.  75 

Ira  Harris,  LL.D.,  Amasa  J.  Parker,  LL.D.,  and  Amos 
Dean.  LL.D.;  president  of  the  faculty,  Hon.  Greene  C. 
Bronson. 

At  its  origin  the  law  school  was  dependent  upon  the  almost 
unaided  efforts  of  its  professors.  It  had  no  endowment,  and 
it  was  with  difficulty  that  lecture  rooms  for  its  use  could  be 
procured.  The  first  lectures  were  given  in  the  third  story  of 
the  Albany  Exchange,  formerly  occupied  by  the  Young  Men's 
Association.  The  first  class  numbered  only  twenty-three  stu- 
dents. While  the  school  was  thus  suffering  from  the  need  of 
a  permanent  location,  the  trustees  of  the  medical  college 
generously  offered  a  piece  of  land  lying  south  of  the  building 
which  they  occupied,  as  a  site  for  a  lecture  hall,  and  by  the 
effort  of  friends  a  sum  was  raised  sufficient  to  defray  the  ex- 
pense of  its  erection.  When  in  1860  more  extensive  accom- 
modations were  required,  the  necessary  additions  and  provi- 
sions were  made  at  the  expense  of  the  professors.  Since  then 
the  number  of  students  has  rapidly  increased. 

At  the  present  time  more  ample  accommodations  are  again 
needed,  and  the  faculty  look  with  confidence  to  the  liberal 
citizens  of  Albany  for  assistance  in  erecting  a  new  and  larger 
edifice. 

THE    DUDLEY    OBSERVATORY. 

This  institution  was  incorporated  by  the  legislature  in 
March,  1852.  It  was  named  in  honor  of  Charles  E.  Dudley, 
as  an  acknowledgment  of  the  munificent  contributions  made 
to  its  endowment  by  his  widow,  Mrs.  Blandina  Dudley.  Prof. 
O.  M.  Mitchel  selected  the  site  and  Gen.  Stephen  Van  Rens- 
selaer  gave  the  land  on  which  the  observatory  building  was 
erected.  The  trustees  have  since  purchased  additional  land, 
amounting  in  all  to  eight  acres,  about  half  a  mile  north  of  the 
capitol.  .The  building  was  completed  in  1854,  from  plans 
furnished  by  Prof.  Mitchel. 


76  HISTORICAL    SKETCH    OF    UNION    COLLEGE. 

The  observatory  was  inaugurated  on  the  28th  of  August, 
1856,  at  the  meeting  of  the  American  Association  for  the 
Advancement  of  Science.  The  inaugural  address  on  that 
occasion  was  delivered  by  Edward  Everett.  A  eulogy  on 
Charles  E.  Dudley  was  also  pronounced  by  Washington  Hunt. 

Mrs.  Dudley's  donations,  including  bequest,  amount  to  more 
than  one  hundred  and  five  thousand  dollars.  The  aggregate 
donations  amount  to  more  than  two  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars. More  than  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  have  been 
expended  on  the  buildings,  instruments,  grounds,  and  other 
objects,  and  seventy  thousand  dollars  invested  as  a  permanent 
fund  for  the  support  of  the  institution. 

The  observatory  is  amply  furnished  with  instruments  pro- 
cured, without  regard  to  expense,  from  the  best  European 
and  American  artists ;  of  these  the  Olcott  meridian  circle  is 
worthy  of  especial  note. 

Since  its  connection  with  Union  University,  three  build- 
ings have  been  erected  for  the  several  departments  of  a 
physical  observatory. 

The  meteorological  department  of  the  latter  is  already  in 
operation,  under  the  direction  of  Gen.  Albert  J.  Myer,  chief 
of  the  United  States  Signal-Service. 

In  1869  a  charter  was  granted  for  an  astronomical  observ- 
atory at  Schenectady,  under  separate  trustees,  but  in  the  in- 
terest of  the  College.  The  act  contemplated  a  loan  from  the 
State,  but  this  failing,  the  project  was  given  up,  and  the  more 
recent  connection  of  the  Dudley  Observatory  at  Albany, 
under  a  university  charter,  has  supplied,  in  the  ample  equip- 
ment of  a  first-class  observatory,  every  needed  facility  in  this 
department. 


INDEX. 


Page. 

Academy,  gift  of 57 

Academy,  Schenectady 6,  8 

Addresses,  titles  of  published 54 

Aiken,  Rev.  Charles  A. 22 

Albany  Law-School 74 

Albany  Medical  College 73 

Alumni  association 42 

Alumni,  home  residence  of 65 

Analytical  chemistry,  students  in • 65 

Anatomy  and  physiology,  professors  of 6 1 

Ancient  Oriental  languages,  professors  of 61 

Apparatus 48,  5  7,  58 

Armsby,  Dr.  James  H 73 

Art  department 51 

Attendance  and  graduation,  statistics  of 64 

Bibliography  of  faculty 19 

Blatchford  oratorical  medals .  ...... . ... . .... ....  46,  5 7 

Botanical  garden 25 

Brown,  James,  fund  given  by 47,  5  7 

Brownell,  Rev.  Thos.  C 16,  19 

Buildings,  former II,  12,  15 

Buildings,  present 23 

Carmina  concordiae , 52 

Catalogues 53 

Charlotte  County,  memorial  from 5 

Chemistry,  analytical,  students  in . .... 65 

Chemical  laboratory ........ 39 

Chemistry  and  natural  history,  professors  of 60 

Christian  Union  endowment  fund 58 

City  hall 12 

City  schools,  classical  department 71 

Civil  engineering .... 38 


7  8  INDEX. 

Page. 

Civil  engyieering,  department  of 38 

Civil  engineering,  course  of  study  in 39 

Civil  engineering,  professors  of , 61 

Civil  engineering,  students  in 65 

Classical  studies,  comparison  of  periods 26-3 1 

Clinton  College,  project  of. . .  „ 5 

Coe  memorial  fund 47 

Collections  in  natural  history 47 

College  magazines  and  periodicals 51 

Colonnades 23 

Commencement  exercises,  place  of  holding. , 9 

Course  of  study 25 

Course  of  study,  comparison  of  periods ,..  26-3 7 

Decline  of  college  during  the  war 22 

Degrees,  honorary 69 

Delavan,  E.  C. ,  gift  of 47,  58 

Douglass,  W.  and  G.,  gift  of 57 

Dudley,  Mrs.  Blandina,  bequest  of 76 

Dudley  Observatory 75 

Edwards,  Rev.  Jonathan 9,  19 

Endowments,  early n 

Faculty,  present 61 

Foster,  Prof.  John 18 

Foster,  Prof.  John,  collections  of  apparatus  by 47 

Fuller,  Joseph  W.,  gift  of 58 

Gardens 25 

Gillespie,  William  M 18,21,38 

Graduation,  statistics  of 64 

Grants  and  endowments « 56 

Greek  and  Latin,  professors  of 59 

Grounds,  description  of » 24 

Gynmasium  , ». 24 

Hassler,  Prof.  F.'R 18 

Herbarium  from  Dr.  George  T.  Stevens 47 

Hickok,  Rev.  Laurens  P .* 16,  19 

Home  residence  of  alumni 65 

Honorary  degrees 69 

Hooker,  Philip,  architect 12 

Inauguration  proceedings 53 


INDEX.  79 

Page. 

Individual  benefactors ^- .         57 

Ingham  prize 46,  5  7 

Jackson,  Prof.  Isaac  W 17,20 

Jackson  garden 25 

Joslin,  Dr.  B.  F 17,20 

King's  College 5 

Laboratory,  chemical 39 

Lancasterian  School i 12 

Land-grants - 5^ 

Legislative  grants - 5^ 

Lewis,  Prof.  Tayler 18,  21 

Libraries .. .. „....  ...... . .         46 

Literary  societies 41 

Logic,  rhetoric,  and  belles-lettres,  professors  of 60 

Lottery  grants 12,  13,  14,  56 

Lowell,  Rev.  R.  T.  S 21 

Macauley,  Rev.  Thomas 1 6 

McClelland,  Dr.  John,  benefactions  of 44 

Magazines  and  periodicals 51 

Mathematics,  professors  of 59 

Maxcy,  Rev.  Jonathan 9 

Memorial  hall 23 

Meteorological  station 76 

Military  instruction 41 

Military  science,  professors  of 61 

Modern  European  languages,  professors  of 61 

Moral  and  mental  philosophy,  professors  of 60 

Name  of  college,  origin  of. .  8 

Natural  history,  collections  in 47 

Natural  philosophy,  professors  of. ........ . ...»  ........ 59 

Newman,  Rev.  John ... ... 18 

North  College 23 

Nott,  Rev.  Eliphalet 10,  19 

Nott,  Joel  B 17 

Nott,  Rev.  John 17 

Nott  scholarships 45>  5  7 

Olcott  meridian  circle 76 

Olivier  models 38 

Organization  and  early  history 5 


So  INDEX. 

Page. 

Pearson,  Jonathan 1 7,  20 

Peissner,  Prof.  Elias 18,  21 

Periodicals,  college 51 

Perkins,  Prof.  Maurice 18 

Philosophical  department 47 

Portraits,  collection  of 51*58 

Potter,  Rev.  Alonzo 16,  20 

Potter,  C.  N.  and  H.,  gift  of 57 

Potter,  Rev.  Eliphalet  Nott 22 

Prefatory  note 3 

Preparatory  department 70 

Preparatory  department,  professors  in 63 

Present  buildings 23 

Present  faculty 61 

Present  grounds 24 

President's  house 24 

Prize  essays 46 

Prize  speaking 46 

Prizes  and  medals 46 

Proal,  Rev.  P.  A 17 

Professors  of  over  ten  years'  service 16 

Professorships,  succession  in 59 

Proudfit,  Rev.  Robert 16 

Publications  by  faculty  - 19 

Ramee,  M.,  plans  by 13 

Recent  history 22 

Reed,  Rev.  Thomas  C 17 

Reformed  Dutch  Church,  gift  of 57 

Residence  of  alumni 65 

Reynaud,  Gregoire 16 

Romeyn,  Rev.  Dirck 7 

Schenectady  Academy 70,  71 

Schenectady,  early  project  of  a  college  at 5 

Schenectady,  gift  of  trustees  of 57 

Schenectady  Lyceum 71 

Scholarships 43,  5  7 

Scientific  studies,  comparison  of  periods 32-37 

Secret  societies 42 

Semi-centennial  of  college 17 


INDEX. 


8l 


Page. 

Semi-centennial  of  Dr.  Nott's  presidency , 19 

Semi-centennial  publications 53 

Signal-service  station 76 

Site  of  permanent  college 13 

Smith,  Rev.  John  Blair 9,  19 

Societies,  college 41 

Songs  of  Union 52 

South  college 23 

Special  prizes 46 

Stevens,  Dr.  George  T. ,  herbarium  of 47 

Students  from  other  colleges 15 

Study,  comparison  of  periods -- 26-37 

Succession  in  professorships 59 

Tryon  County,  memorial  from 5 

Union  Classical  Institute 71 

Union  University 72 

Vedder,  Dr.  A.  M 18 

Wants  of  the  college 59 

Warner  prize 46,  57 

Wayland,  Rev.  Francis 16,  20 

Webster,  H.  E.,  contributions  of , 47 

Wells,  Prof.  William 18 

West  college 12 

Wheatley  collection 47>  58 

Wolfe,  Miss  Catharine  L.,  benefactions  of 43 ,  5 1,  57 

Wolfe,  John  David 43 

Yates,  Rev.  Andrew 16 

Yates,  Rev.  John  A 17 

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